


To Hell and Back

by CrashDevil (cjdevlin19)



Category: Supernatural
Genre: Alcohol Abuse/Alcoholism, Child Abuse, F/M
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-02-16
Updated: 2018-05-07
Packaged: 2018-05-21 00:20:54
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 30
Words: 141,423
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6031234
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/cjdevlin19/pseuds/CrashDevil
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>This is the AU version of my Marion story, where Marion Winchester was around their whole lives. It started with one scene playing in my head over and over which prompted me to write an AU:</p>
<p>“What do you want, Crowley?” She asked, untying her boots and toeing them off.<br/>“Whatever happened to your manners? I know I taught you better than that.” A deep, gravelly accent came from the chair next to the television.<br/>“Yeah, but then my daddy came in and fucked it all up. The question hasn’t changed, Crowley.”<br/>“You know, it’s days like this when I regret pulling you out of the way of that Chevy.” He said, standing and adjusting his suit jacket.<br/>“Yeah, but then you remember that you came here for a reason and you give me my damn assignment.”</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Eventual Crowley/Marion, John is an unbelievable dick to her, Dean follows his Dad's lead on that. Triggers for child abuse, alcoholism, torture, eventual mentions of rape, but it's mostly glossed over.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Dad's on a hunting trip

**Author's Note:**

  * Inspired by [Marion](https://archiveofourown.org/works/5486756) by [CrashDevil (cjdevlin19)](https://archiveofourown.org/users/cjdevlin19/pseuds/CrashDevil). 



Marion leaned against the trunk of the Impala, a Marlboro resting lightly between her lips. Dean would never let her smoke in his baby, he even insisted she spray herself with air freshener after every smoke. She’d have quit smoking if the annoyance were more than the rush from the nicotine.

She took one last drag as she heard her brothers walking up, then she threw the butt on the ground.

“The weapon training and melting the silver into bullets? Man, Dean, we were raised like warriors.”

“So, what are you gonna do? You’re just gonna live some normal, apple pie life? Is that it?” Dean asked. Marion had heard this rant from her twin. He hated that Sam had abandoned them for a boring college environment. Marion would never admit that she’d applied to Stanford just a few years before Sam had. Dean would never let her live it down.

“No. Not normal. Safe.”

“And that’s why you ran away.” Marion saw him turn away as he said the words.

“I was just going to college. It was Dad who said if I was gonna go I should stay gone. And that’s what I’m doing.”

“Yeah, well. Dad’s in real trouble right now, if he’s not dead already. I can feel it.”

Marion waited to be acknowledged by either of her brothers but they were too caught up in their tension. She considered lighting up another cigarette but decided against it.

“We can’t do this alone.” Dean finished.

“Yes, you can.”

“Yeah, well. I don’t want to.”

Sam sighed, looking down deep in thought. He looked back up and caught his sister’s gaze. “What was he hunting?”

Dean pulled open the trunk, pushing Marion out of the way a bit roughly. “All right, let’s see. Where the hell did I put that thing?”

“So, when Dad left, why didn’t you go with him?” Sam asked, looking across the trunk at his displaced sister.

“We were working a gig. This voodoo thing down in New Orleans.” Marion said.

“Dad let you guys go on a hunting trip by yourselves?”

“We’re twenty-six, dude.” Dean said, grabbing a folder. “All right, here we go. So Dad was checking out this two-lane black top just outside of Jericho, California. About a month ago, this guy…” he handed a paper to Sam. “They found his car, but he vanished. Completely MIA.”

“So, maybe he was kidnapped.” Sam said, once he’d finished reading.

“Yeah. Well, here’s another one in April. Another one in December ‘oh-four’, oh-three’, ‘ninety-eight’, ‘ninety-two’. Ten of them over the past twenty years.” Dean said, throwing out a piece of paper for every disappearance. Once he’d made his point, he collected them back into the folder.

“All men, all the same five-mile stretch of road.” Marion supported as Dean rooted around in the trunk.

“It started happening more and more, so Dad went to go dig around. That was about three weeks ago. I hadn’t heard from him since, which was bad enough.” Dean pulled an EVP recorder out of one of his bags. “Then I got this voicemail yesterday.”

“Dean… something big is starting to happen… I need to try to figure out what’s going on. It may… Be very careful, Dean. We’re all in danger.”

Dean pressed stop and looked over at Sam

“You know there’s EVP on that?” Sam earned a proud smile from Marion and a sarcastic grin from Dean.

“Not bad, Sammy. Kinda like riding a bike, isn’t it? All right. We slowed the message down, Mare ran it through a gold wave, took out the hiss, and this is what we got.”

“I can never go home.”

“Never go home.” Sam said, as Dean put the trunk back together and slammed it shut. Dean leaned against his baby and Marion took her place next to him.

“You know, in almost two years, I’ve never bothered you, never asked you for a thing.”

Sam sighed, looking around. Marion could see him trying to find an excuse. But he finally looked back at them. “All right. I’ll go. I’ll help you find him. But… I have to get back first thing Monday. Just wait here.” He said, heading to the apartment.

“What’s first thing Monday?” Marion asked, genuinely interested.

“I have this… I have an interview.”

“What, a job interview? Skip it.” Dean scoffed.

“It’s a law school interview, and it’s my whole future on a plate.”

“Law school?” Dean smirked.

“So, we got a deal, or what?”

Dean said nothing as Marion nodded. “You’ll be here.”

As Sam walked back toward his apartment, Marion slapped Dean on the back of his head. “You know, you don’t have to be that way.”

“What way?”

“So rude and unimpressed. Having a lawyer in the family would probably be helpful for when we inevitably get arrested for any of the number of illegal shit we pull on a hunt.”

“Arrested? Never happen. I’m too good and you’re too cute to get arrested. That is, until the lung cancer kicks in and you lose your hair in the chemo. Don’t forget to spray.”

“Oh, shut up, jerk.” She said, pulling out a small aerosol can. “We’re hunters, Dean. Probably won’t live long enough to get cancer.”

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Marion rode in the back of the Impala during the 7 hour trip. She spent most of the ride dodging Sam’s glances in the rearview mirror. He was still mad at her, it seemed. He still felt like she’d abandoned him. Her mind drifted, on more than one occasion during the drive, to the night he left for Stanford.

_“Come with me. We can get your transcripts to the Dean of Admissions and you can leave this all behind, too.”_

_“I’m sorry, Sam. I can’t. I fought this battle with myself four years ago. Dean and Dad won it.”_

_“I know you applied. Stanford, Harvard, UW. I saw the envelopes back then. How do you think I got the idea that I could be more than just a hunter?”_

_“Don’t blame your rebellion on me, Sammy. I stayed. I hid those letters because they were a damn pipe dream. I can’t leave Dean, and Dean would never abandon Dad. Do you really think you can do this, though? The normal life? Do you think you’re ever gonna have a home where the windows aren’t lined in salt? Or with silver knives strategically placed that you claim are antiques. The iron poker for the fireplace you don’t have.” Marion said. She shook her head. “And what if you do it? Settle down, wife, kids. That just means that when something comes for you like what came for Mom, you’ll be too rusty to take it out.”_

_“You’re just afraid that this might make me happy, because then you’ll have to face the fact that you may have made the wrong choice.”_

_“No, Sam. I thought this through. I agonized over the possible outcomes, but there is no normal for us. We’ve never had normal and you leaving the fold only means that you get to pretend for a while. I’m not afraid of you being happy. I’m afraid of everyone else being miserable.”_

Dean stopped at a gas station about 4 hours into the journey. He went inside and Sam finally turned to her. “Hey. How’s it been?”

Marion scoffed, loudly. “Four years. Four years and that’s all you have to say to me?”

“It’s only been two.”

“No, Sammy. It’s been two since you spoke to Dean, three since you spoke to Dad, but you haven’t said a word to me since the night you left.”

“Wow, I guess you’re right. Huh. But… Seriously, how has it been? How’s Dad been? He still drink a lot?”

“We all do. Beer on the daily, liquor when it gets too hard to sleep.”

“And you smoke now?” Sam asked, motioning to her shirt pocket.

“I’ve smoked since I was 16, I just don’t hide it anymore.”

“You should’ve come with me, you know. I doubt you would be punishing your lungs and liver if you were away from the family.”

“I doubt I’d be punishing my liver if Mom was still alive, if motel beds didn’t suck, if you had been a better son and brother, but none of those things are true.”

“Mare, that’s not fair. I had a reason to leave.”

“And wouldn’t listen to any of the reasons to stay.”

“I couldn’t stay. Things got so bad with Dad…and I’m not staying now. Just this one weekend and then I’m going back to school.”

“Yeah. I figured. Gods forbid you spend a little time with your family.”

Sam ignored the plural and moved on. “So… uh, have you got anyone yet? I have Jessica. Dean is never gonna have anyone. So… what about you?”

“Yeah. Let me tell you about it. I met him on a hunt. He’s a demon. Of course, Dad and Dean hate him, but our love is strong!”

“You could have just said ‘no’.”

“And you could’ve just bragged about your girlfriend.”

“True.”

“Wanna tell me about her?”

“I think she’s the one, Mare.” Sam said, wistfully. “I love her. I… I bought her a ring. I’m going to ask her to marry me if I make it into law school.”

“Wow. That’s… huge. Sam, I’m… don’t tell Dean. You’ll only get the ‘you’re throwing away your independence’ speech. But don’t hinge this decision on the admittance to law school. If you love her…”

“I do. I just think it’d be perfect to pop the question during the celebration.”

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

“Thank you.” Sam said before closing his phone. “All right. So, there’s no one matching Dad at the hospital or morgue. So, that’s something, I guess.”  
  
Dean glanced over at Sam, then back at the road. As they approached a bridge ahead of them, Marion could see two police cars and several officers.  
  
Dean nodded to the scene. “Check it out.”

Sam leaned forward to get a better look, but Marion just rolled her eyes, before rolling her body forward and laying face-down on the back floor of the Impala. As Dean pulled over, Sam tossed a throw blanket on top of her. Dean grabbed an ID out of the glove compartment. Their dad had decided back when Sam was a Junior in high school that the three of them walking up together seemed to breach most peoples’ suspension of disbelief. So, one of them was always supposed to hide in the car. It always ended up being Marion.

“Let's go.” Dean said, opening his door.

Marion pulled out her phone and flipped through pictures of her and Dean. Things were different with Sam there. Not that Dean was a really great brother to her when it was just the two of them, but at least then, he didn’t have a choice but to interact with her.

A few moments later, her brothers were back in the car and driving toward town. She sat up when she felt they were far enough away. “So?” She asked.

“Another guy taken. Troy. His girlfriend is downtown putting up posters. We’re gonna…” Dean started. Marion interrupted.

“Sounds great. Can you pull into this motel? I’ve gotta get some rest. You guys got this.” She said. Sam looked at her in the mirror, but Dean just nodded and pulled into a parking lot. “Thanks.” She said, pushing her way out of the Impala, dragging her go bag behind her. She walked up to the desk clerk and pulled out her wallet.

“I need a room. You take cash?” She asked, roughly.

The clerk nodded. “I’ll need a copy of an ID, though. Just in case.”

“How about I give you an extra $50 and you give me a damn key?”

“Hunnerd.”

“I’m not haggling. $50 for your pocket or I walk to the next motel in the phone book and give them the same offer.”

The clerk reached behind him and grabbed a key. “Name for the register?”

“Bonnie Raitt. Thanks.” She said, throwing a fifty and two twenty dollar bills on the counter.


	2. Assignment

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Marion is glad she stayed in the car.

Marion dropped her bag as soon as she walked into the motel room. She had been given the privilege of her own separate room since she was about 17. It was partly for safety (the monsters always seemed to target the boys’ room) and partly for feminine privacy. And partly for him.

“What do you want, Crowley?” She asked, untying her boots and toeing them off.

“Whatever happened to your manners? I know I taught you better than that.” A deep, gravelly accent came from the chair next to the television.

“Yeah, but then my daddy came in and fucked it all up. The question hasn’t changed, Crowley.”

“You know, it’s days like this when I regret pulling you out of the way of that Chevy.” He said, standing and adjusting his suit jacket.

“Yeah, but then you remember that you came here for a reason and you give me my damn assignment.” She said.

Crowley handed her a small piece of white paper. “Name’s Devon McIntyre. Sold it for money, so you can do this one without the guilt.”

“Fine.” She said, snatching the paper and pocketing it.

“You know, there was a time when you enjoyed my company. What happened?”

“I figured out who you really are and what you do with the people I mark.”

“They do it to themselves. They know what they’re signing up for. I have never lied to anyone about what Hell has in store for them. And I told you what I was back when you were to young and dumb to hate me for it.”

“I’m a hunter, you ass. A demon killed my mother.”

“And a demon saved you. So many times that I would be lynched if the boys downstairs knew about it. I pulled you out of the path of that truck when you were four. I ripped the head off that vampire when you were twelve. I’m the one who risked my entire reputation to claim a damn hunter’s daughter so that no other demons would lay a bloody pinkie on you. And I tried to convince you to back off when you insisted on helping me when you were sixteen. You wanna back out now? Sorry, it doesn’t work that way. Lilith has you on contract, sealed with a sodding kiss and as long as she’s around, you work for us. Not my fault, you moody little-” Crowley sighed and let his anger go. “Just go mark the wealthy little areshole so my dogs can find him.”

Marion nodded. “We’re on a hunt. It may be a few days.” She said, pulling the paper out and setting it on the table next to her bed.

Crowley looked at her like he wanted to say something else, but he just nodded and disappeared.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Marion pulled her phone off the side table and opened it. “It’s a ghost. A woman named Constance Welch. She threw herself off the bridge we stopped at, earlier. We’re gonna head down there, later, see if we can draw her out.” Dean said..

“Okay. Let me know how it goes. You’ve got the sawed-off in the trunk, right? Enough salt rounds?”

“Yeah. You want in on this?”

“No. You get to gank ghosts with me all the time. Spend some time with Sammy.”

“Oh-kay. We’ll call you, okay?”

“Right.” Marion said, before flipping her phone closed. She sighed and stood, pulling her bag off the ground and putting it on the bed. She pulled out a slinky red dress and some strappy sandal heels. After pulling her hair into a messy up-do, and pasting her face with bright red lipstick and brown eye shadow, she walked out of her motel room and headed to a luxury car with a demon in the driver’s seat. Marion took her place next to Crowley in the back. His eyes dragged down her figure, appreciatively.

“If you mention how well I fill out this dress, I will stab you in the eye with my brand.”

Crowley nodded and signaled for the driver to head to their destination. Marion stepped out of the car, gracefully, and walked up to the door of the mansion. She smiled for the camera near the buzzer. “Who are you?” Came over the speaker.

“I’m a gift from Mr. Crowley.” She responded, sweetly.

The door opened, slightly, to reveal an attractive, well-dressed brunette man, looking at her warily. “Crowley?”

“Mr. Crowley would me to remind you that he kept his end of the deal. He made you wealthy and appealing to women. May I?” She asked, before pushing past him into the mansion, across the lines of the devil’s trap by the door.

“Mr. Crowley would also like you to know that he’s aware that you are planning to run. That you think you can use the wealth he gave you to hide. Mr. Crowley wants me to tell you that he didn’t get to be King of the Crossroads by letting greedy little pissants squirm out of their contracts. And you won’t be the first to try.” She said, before grabbing his shirt and jabbing her brand into his left bicep. She let him go and stepped back, so that he could examine the mark.

“What the fuck was that?”

“A homing beacon for Mr. Crowley’s hounds. No matter where you run, they’ll find you. Thanks for playing.” She said, starting to go. Devon grabbed her hand and tried to pull her back. She twisted, ax kicked him in the head and grabbed his throat. “You have a week, you miserable prick. You have a week to do something worthwhile. Do not make me cut out all that potential by killing you early.” She threatened, tossing him to the ground and walking out of the devil’s trap on the way out.

“You aren’t a demon?”

“No. But I’m sure he’ll turn me into one, eventually.” She said, before shutting the door on him.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

“You know that’s not going to happen.” Crowley said, opening the car door for her.

“What?”

“That’s not your deal. You didn’t sign away your soul, you signed away your work. Just like a real job, it only seems like it’s crushing your soul.” Crowley said, as the car pulled away from the mansion.

“I’m helping demons, Crowley. Helping you damn souls to unbelievable torment. That doesn’t sound like something that’s gonna get me into Heaven.”

“Well, there’s always the void.”

“Yeah. Being a ghost. That sounds peachy.” She said, sarcastically.

“Look, you knew. You asked for this. I begged you not to kiss me, but you thought you knew what you were doing.”

“I was 16!” She exclaimed. “I just wanted my father to stop hitting me.”

“And it worked, right? He hasn’t hit you in a decade.” Crowley reasoned, trying to block out the thought that he’d have already taken her to Hell, if she’d signed a normal contract.

“It doesn’t change it, Crowley. It doesn’t change the fact that I traded my well being for… this. I thought I knew what I was doing and I thought I was grown enough to make that decision, but I wasn’t.”

There was silence in the car for half an hour.

“Well, if you do end up in Hell, Marion, I’ll make sure they go easy on you. That’s the best I got. See you next time.” Crowley said as they pulled into the motel.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Crowley stared out the window of his mansion, lost in thought. He knew what was being planned for the Winchesters. He wanted to feel bad for Marion. He actually liked the bitch and wished there was something he could do to keep her out of all the shit Lilith and Azazel were about to throw her into.

He supposed he could have let her die back when she was four, but that was wishful thinking. Lilith wanted the Winchesters alive. They were destined for much, much more. Even his Marion. He grimaced at the term, which seemed like it might be an endearment.

_*It’s the truth.*_ He reminded himself. _*She signed herself over to me. I could treat her like a sodding slave, but I don’t. Ungrateful cunt.*_

He turned to a demon lying on his couch, wearing a well-dressed brunette lawyer as a vessel. “You. Go change your meatsuit. I’ve got some tensions I need to relieve.”

“Anything in particular, sir?”

“Tall, tan, dirt blonde, green eyes, and leather. Go more Roadhouse and less Mistress with it.”

“Yes, sir.”

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Crowley looked down at the surrogate he’d taken his frustration out on. Covered in bruises, bleeding cuts and cum, he could almost imagine this biker chick in her forties was Marion. The illusion was broken as soon as he thought about it, so he sat up and looked away from her. “Get your old vessel back. She’s good for business. But… keep track of this one.”

“Yes, sir.”

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Marion was pulling on her boots when a knock came to her motel room door. She opened it and nodded at Dean. “Dad had a room here, too. Figured out we’re dealing with a Woman in White. Dad hasn’t been here in a few days. You hungry?”

“Yeah, actually.” She responded, grabbing her black fleece jacket and walking out the door. She noticed the police presence right at the same time as Dean did. He looked over and saw a police car, where the motel clerk was talking to the deputies. As the clerk pointed at Dean and Marion, Dean pulled out his cell phone. The deputies started to approach them.

“Dude, five-oh. Take off.” Dean said, into the phone.

“Uh, they kinda spotted us. Go find Dad.” Dean said, before flipping the phone closed. He grinned and turned to the deputies. “Problem, Officers?”

“Did we do something?” Marion asked.

“Where’s your partner?” The deputy asked, ignoring Marion.

“Partner? What, what partner?” Dean asked. Marion put on her best clueless face.

Deputy Jaffe glanced over his shoulder and jerked his thumb towards the motel room. Deputy Hein headed over there. Dean fidgeted.

“So, fake US Marshal. Fake credit cards. You got anything that’s real?” Jaffe asked.

“My boobs.” Dean replied, with a smirk.

Marion rolled her eyes and put her hands behind her head as the cop slammed Dean into the hood. “The best thing you can do, stud, is keep your mouth closed. You obviously need a refresher on your ‘right to remain silent’.”

“Like I’m gonna take legal advice from a prostitute.” Dean snapped, thankfully catching on to her train of thought.

The cop turned her around and examined her. He seemed a bit skeptical about her status as a working girl. The jeans, boots and fleece jacket weren’t exactly street-walker clothes. “You don’t know each other?”

“Look, ask the clerk. Paid in cash. I was just looking for a place to bed down. I work from home… even when I don’t have a home, if you get my drift. I’m not saying I’m a sex worker, but… I’ve never met this guy before this morning. He was gonna buy me breakfast and we were gonna head back to my room.”

The deputy looked between the two of them, then pulled her handcuffs off. “It’s your lucky day. This guy is a much bigger fish than you. But if I find you soliciting in my town again, I’ll personally escort you downtown.”

“Yes, sir. Thank you, sir.” She said. She leaned over next to Dean, who was bent over the back of the cop car. “Better luck next time, handsome.” She whispered before walking off toward her room. Sam was sitting on her bed.

“How’d you manage?” He asked.

“I convinced them I was a whore. They let me go because they didn’t have any proof that I know Dean. This is one time I’m glad I stayed in the car.” She said, grabbing her bag off the floor and rifling through it. “So, where to?”

“Uh, Joseph Welch. He’s the husband of the woman in white. That’s where Dad would’ve gone.”

“Okay.” She sighed. “I don’t even know what I’m looking for in here.” She threw her hands up and headed toward the window. She watched as the police car pulled away with Dean in the back. She pulled Dean’s keys out of her jacket pocket and nodded toward Sam.

“When did he hand over his keys?” Sam asked.

“I picked them off him when I said goodbye.” She said, heading out the door and into the parking lot.

Marion tossed the keys at Sam. “If I move the seat forward, Dean will kill me.” She said, getting in on the passenger side.

“You… you got really good at this stuff.” Sam said, sliding in behind the steering wheel.

“I was never bad at it, Sammy. I just didn’t have a lot of opportunity to show my skill, when you were around.”

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Sam pulled into the driveway of a house with an overgrown yard. Marion got out and walked up to the door in front of Sam. She knocked with a closed fist. An older man opened and looked out at them. “Hi. Are you Joseph Welch?” Sam spoke up.

“Yeah.” Joseph responded, walking out of his doorway and shutting the door behind him.

“Hi. We just need to ask you a few questions.” Marion said, with a smile.

“Have you seen this man?” Sam asked, handing Joseph a picture of John and the 2 boys. Marion was not in the picture.

“Yeah. He was a little older, but that’s him.” Joseph said, handing the photo back to Sam. “He came by three or four days ago. Said he was a reporter.”

“That’s right. We’re all working on a story together.” Sam replied, as they walked into the junk that was Joseph Welch’s front yard.

“Well, I don’t know what the hell kinda story you’re working on. The questions he asked me?”

“About your wife Constance?” Marion asked.

“He asked me where she was buried.”

“What, I gotta go through this twice?”

“It’s fact-checking. If you don’t mind.” Marion said.

“In a plot. Behind my old place over on Breckenridge.” Joseph answered.

“And, why did you move?” Sam asked.

“I’m not gonna live in the house where my children died.” Joseph responded.

Sam and Marion stopped walking. Joseph followed suit.

“Mr. Welch, did you ever marry again?” Sam asked.

“No way. Constance, she was the love of my life. Prettiest woman I ever known.”

“So, you had a happy marriage?”

Joseph hesitated before responding. “Definitely.”

“Well, that should do it. Thanks for your time.” Sam said with a smile. Marion stood her ground while Joseph and Sam started walking in their separate directions. Sam waited a moment, then look back at Joseph. “Mr. Welch, did you ever hear of a woman in white?”

Joseph turned back around. “A what?”

“A woman in white. Or sometimes ’Weeping Woman’?” Marion said.

The man just stared.

“It’s a ghost story. Well, it’s more of a phenomenon, really.” Sam started to walk back to the man. “Um, they’re spirits. They’ve been sighted for hundreds of years, dozens of places. In Hawaii, Mexico, lately in Arizona, Indiana. All these are different women.”

Sam stopped in front of Joseph Welch. “You understand. But all share the same story.”

“I don’t care much for nonsense.” Joseph said, starting to head toward his house again.

“See, when they were alive, their husbands were unfaithful to them. And these women, basically suffering from temporary insanity, murdered their children.” Sam seemed to hit the right button because Joseph turned around. “Then, once they realized what they had done, they took their own lives. So, now their spirits are cursed, walking back roads, waterways. And if they find an unfaithful man, they kill him. And that man is never seen again.”

“You think...you think that has something to do with...Constance? You smartass!”

“You tell me.”

“I mean, maybe... maybe I made some mistakes. But no matter what I did, Constance, she never would have killed her own children. Now, you get the hell out of here! And you don't come back!” Joseph’s face shook in anger and grief, then he turned away. Marion and Sam walked back to the Impala.

“Guess you got pretty good at this stuff, too.” Marion said.

“Thanks. Now, let’s spring the idiot and we can burn Constance’s bones and get back to Paolo Alto.” Sam said, pulling out his cell phone.


	3. Take Me Home

Sam was driving the Impala when his phone rang. He pulled it out and answered it, putting it on speaker.

“Fake 911 phone call? Sammy, I don't know, that's pretty illegal.”

“You're welcome.” Sam said, with a grin.

“Listen, we gotta talk.” Dean said.

“Tell me about it. So, the husband was unfaithful. We are dealing with a Woman in White. And she's buried behind her old house, so that should have been Dad's next stop.”

“Sammy, would you shut up for a second?” Dean interjected.

“I just can't figure out why Dad hasn't destroyed the corpse yet.”

“Well, that's what I'm trying to tell you. He's gone. Dad left Jericho.”

“What? How do you know?” Marion exclaimed.

“I've got his journal.”

“He doesn't go anywhere without that thing.” Sam said.

“Yeah, well, he did this time.”

“What's it say?” Sam and Marion asked, in unison.

“Ah, the same old ex-Marine crap, when he wants to let us know where he's going.”

“Coordinates. Where to?” Sam asked.

“I'm not sure yet.”

“I don't understand. I mean, what could be so important that Dad would just skip out in the middle of a job? Dean, what the hell is going on?” Sam asked before looking up and slamming the brake, dropping his phone. Marion flew forward from the force and hit her head on the dashboard. Constance had appeared on the road in front of him. The car went right through her as Sam brought it to a halt.

“Sam? Sam! Marion?” Dean’s voice shouted from the phone. Sam breathed hard as Constance appeared in the backseat of the Impala. The passenger door opened and an unseen force pushed the groggy Marion out of the Impala.

As the door shut and locked, Marion hear the Woman in White say. “Take me home.”

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

As Marion was limping down the road, Dean pulled up in a light blue Mercury Sable he’d hotwired. “What the hell happened?” He asked as she got in.

“Constance surprised us on our way to burn her bones. She wanted nothing to do with me, for obvious reasons, so she threw me out of the Impala, hijacked your baby and drove off with our brother.”

“But Sam wouldn’t… would he?”

“Dean, does that matter, right now? A ghost has Sammy. Let’s go!”

Dean pulled away from the curb, speeding down the blacktop. “You okay?”

Marion breathed in deeply. “I’ve had a lot worse headshots.” She said, rubbing her neck, hoping in vain to prevent the whiplash she felt coming.

Dean nodded as he pulled in off to the side of the Impala. He ran up to the side of the Impala and shot at the ghost of Constance Welch who seemed to have her hand buried in Sam’s chest. Glass shattered all over the driver’s seat and dashboard but the woman only flickered for a moment before showing back up, so Marion took a few shots at her.

Sam used the momentary disruption to sit up and put the car in drive, smashing into the house. Dean and Marion watched in disbelief. Marion ran through the hole in the wall and looked into the car. Dean pushed her toward the front of the car as he looked in through the passenger side window.

“Sam! Sam! You okay?”

"I think." He answered, weakly.

"Can you move?" Dean asked, moving debris out of the way so that he could wrench the door open.

"Yeah. Help me?" Sam groaned, lifting his arm for assistance. As Dean leaned into the Impala to grasp their brother's hand, Marion watched the ghost pick up a framed photograph and look down into it.

"Guys?" She whispered as Dean helped Sam out of the car.

"There you go." Dean said, before closing the car door. The boys looked up in the direction Marion was staring. The ghost threw the picture to the ground, glaring at them. Marion jumped up onto the hood of the car, screaming out as her leg got crushed by the cabinet the ghost pushed across the floor, pinning her and her brothers to the car.

Constance seemed ready to advance on the trapped hunters, until the lights began to flicker. Her fear was palpable as water started to pour down the steps. She appeared at the bottom of the stairs, looking up to the top. "You've come home to us, Mommy." A pair of voices chorused.

The ghost looked distraught, before the children, a boy and girl, showed up behind her. The hunters watched as the children embraced her and she screamed as they all flickered like a poor television connection. The children pulled their screaming mother into a puddle on the floor. As soon as she was gone, the pressure on the cabinet disappeared, allowing Dean and Sam to push it over backwards.

Marion stayed on the hood, rubbing her leg as Sam and Dean walked over to the spot where the ghosts had turned into a puddle together.

"So this is where she drowned her kids." Dean said.

Sam nodded. "That's why she could never go home. She was too scared to face them."

"You found her weak spot. Nice work, Sammy." Dean said, slapping Sam's chest where Constance had buried her hand in him.

Sam gave a pained chuckle. "Yeah, I wish I could say the same for you guys. What were you thinking shooting Casper in the face, you freaks?"

"Hey. Saved your ass." Dean said, before leaning over to examine the car. "I'll tell you another thing. If you screwed up my car?"

Marion jumped down from the hood, hopping a little too keep pressure off of her bad leg, as her twin twisted around to look at their little brother. "He'll kill ya." She said as Dean finished, "I'll kill you."

Sam laughed as Marion pulled out her cigarettes and limped toward the grass. "You boys dig the car out. I'm gonna go poison myself."


	4. Alone

Marion sat in the backseat of the Impala, trying to ignore the pain coursing through her body. This wasn't the worst hunt she'd been on, but this was definitely the most pain she'd been in lately. She placed her left hand on her neck and tried to rub the whiplash away. Her mind drifted to the first time she'd gotten whiplash, when she was 12. Crowley had rubbed little circles on her neck, made it 100 times better. She had never been able to recreate that process by herself, and she wasn't in a position to ask him for anything, not since that kiss.

Marion stared out the back of the Impala. She hated thinking about her first kiss. She hated thinking about Crowley. She hated thinking about the deal she’d made. But more than anything, she missed the days when he was her secret friend and protector, instead of her demonic boss. She wished she could go back to being that naïve 16 year old with a crush on him, instead of the jaded 26 year old who had never been kissed by any man the way that demon had kissed her.

Marion touched her lips, instinctively, then tore her hand away. “Dean, I need a cigarette. Pull over, or I’m gonna make your baby smell like the Marlboro man.”

“I’d pull your lungs out.” Dean growled, but he pulled over.

Marion pushed her way out of the car, a cigarette already between her lips. Sam stepped out beside her.

“So… You okay?”

“I’m fine. Why?”

“You seem… Look, Dean won’t mention it, but we went looking for you last night. You weren’t there. You weren’t outside smoking. You weren’t anywhere close to the motel.” Sam whispered.

She took a deep drag and turned to Sam. “I took a walk. I don’t sleep well, especially when we got ghosts around. Didn’t think you guys would come looking. Dean never does. And when it was the three of us before, I mostly got ignored, so… sorry to worry you.”

“Dean says it happens a lot. He says he comes up empty looking for you several times a year.”

* _Shit. Dean’s paying more attention than I thought.*_ “I have nightmares.” She responded, thinking quickly. “And that’s why Dean won’t ask, he doesn’t want that answer. Dean doesn’t want to hear that I relive every close encounter every night and sometimes I can’t make myself close my eyes and go back to those moments where I almost got myself ganked, so I go out and run until I can’t move. Or I go out and drink until I can’t move. Or every once in a while, I go pick up a guy and pretend I’m normal for a while. I don’t tell Dean because that would require talking about feelings and fears and you know how he reacts to that.”

Sam looked down, embarrassed for his sister. “I’m sorry. I didn’t know.”

“Please, don’t. Don’t do the pity face. I’m fine. I just have a bit of trouble sleeping. There are hunters worse off than me. You hear about Martin?”

“Yeah. Breakdown.”

“Yeah. And I’m pretty far from that, so just forget about it.” She said, tossing her cigarette to the ground and stomping on it. She sprayed herself with air freshener and got back into the car.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Marion stood outside as Dean waited inside the police station with Sam. Her mind flashing to the night she'd run into her baby brother's bedroom to see a yellow-eyed apparition throw her mother up to the roof and keep her there with it's magic. She'd been paralyzed with fear, unable to tell her father what she'd seen when he ran into the room to investigate. She hadn't been able to move until the room, and her mother, burst into flame.

“Whatever demon scum killed my mother just did the exact same to Sammy’s girlfriend. You wouldn’t know anything about that, would you, Boss?”

“Of course not. I don’t know any demons that work that way. Yer makin’ me repeat myself.” Crowley said, walking up beside her.

“Of course. Sorry.”

“I’ve got another…”

“I can’t right now. My brothers are getting suspicious. Dean, apparently, checks up on me every once in a while and they know I wasn’t in the motel room the other night. I gave an excuse but if I were to disappear now, when my baby brother needs me most, that excuse might fall through.”

“You seem to think you have a choice, sweetheart.”

“Crowley, I’ve been doing this for years. I complain but I’ve never flat refused. I need more time. That’s all.”

“Unfortunately, you won’t be in California in a few days, so this needs to be now.”

“Crowley, get off my ass.”

Crowley grabbed her collar and pulled her close to him. “I’m not asking, Winchester. You haven’t felt what it is to have me on your ass. I am King of the Crossroads, you dumb bitch, and I own you. I could keep you on a slab in the Pit, if I wanted, so keep that in mind as you do your damn job. No more attitude, no more complaining. You do the job, or I find a place for you in Hell.”

Marion looked down at his hand wrapped in the collar of her tank top. “I thought you said I wasn’t going to Hell.”

“Your soul isn’t sentenced to the Pit, but I can put your body anywhere I want. I can do whatever I want to you. Read your bloody contract.”

The thought of Crowley doing whatever he wanted to her made her feel like that 16 year old girl again. She quelled the thrill that ran through her and cleared her throat. “Fine, Crowley. Take me where you want, but I’m not going to change my clothes and I have to be back in time for the funeral.”

He let go of her shirt and smoothed her collar. “Good on you. You know, if you keep up this agreeable attitude, I might just do what I want with you, as a reward.” He said, with a wink. Marion hoped she hid the shiver that went through her.

“Just tell me where you need me to go. Come on.”

Crowley shook his head at himself, angry that he’d let himself flirt with her. “Yeah, here. San Luis Obispo. Sold it for being a famous director. Patrick Cohen.”

She snatched the paper from his hand. “Sure. Mansion, tight security. It’s cake.” She said, pulling out her phone and heading further into the parking lot. “Hey, Dean. I’ve got to hit a grocery or convenience store. Chick problems. I’ll grab pie if they got it. I’ll bring your baby back in one piece, I promise.”

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

“You know, you’re pathetic.” A tiny voice said, appearing next to Crowley in the study of his mansion.

“Everyone is pathetic compared to you, Lilith. What have I done now?”

“She’s just a human. She isn’t even as important as her brothers. Why do you facilitate her?”

"Well, don’t Yellow-Eyes like havin’ ‘em under surveillance? How better than our woman on the inside?”

“Your woman.” Lilith clarified. “Why don’t you just fuck her and get it over with?”

“If I were going to slum it with a meat bag, it wouldn’t be a hunter whore.”

“No? Is that why Amber took a vessel that was much a doppelganger of the Winchester girl?”

Crowley stared away into his fireplace.

“I understand, Crowley. I loved a human once.”

“I don’t love anyone. And Adam was millenia ago.”

“The time means nothing. If given the opportunity, I’d still take him back. You could have her, you know. Her contract says-”

“I know what her bloody contract says! If I wanted the bitch, I’d’ve taken her when she was young and pure.”

“A convincing justification, Crowley. I won’t press the issue. But if you speak to me in that tone of voice again. I will cut the skin from your vessel with a silver knife, bathe you in Holy water and cure you in salt, do you understand?”

“Yes, m’am.”

The little girl disappeared as a bowl on Crowley’s desk started to bubble and swirl. “Crowley, it’s done. And I’ve got a burner cell I’m gonna hand you next time I see you. I’m not doing this bowl thing again. It’s disgusting.”

“Aw, did you have to get your hands bloody, love?”

“Not that you give a damn, Crowley, but I had to kill a cat and I’d be very upset if the damn thing hadn’t attacked me when I first walked up to it. Maybe it smelled demon on me.”

“Well, I don’t suppose you need a hound to guide you back to your brothers?” He was trying to keep her on the line.

“No. I’m going to toss this damn bowl and then I’m going to get back to Paolo Alto. Dean’s already blowing up my cell about me taking his car, so I have to get back. I mean, if I’m allowed to, sir. I wouldn’t want to complain or go against your wishes.” She said, sarcastically.

“Watch the tone, missy. Of course you can go back. I will get myself a cellular device if you insist, Marion.”

“Thank you! All right, Crowley-”

“Marion… I don’t enjoy acting that way with you. Try not to incite that again.”

“Yes, Boss.”

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Marion pulled into the parking lot of the motel Dean and Sam had checked into. She knocked on the door, lowered her head and lifted her peace offering. Dean pulled the door open and growled as he pulled the whole pie from her outstretched arms. “That wasn’t no trip to a damn gas station, Marion.”

She looked over at Sam’s sleeping form and whispered the lie she’d conceived in the car. “No. It was a trip to a pool hall where I won some tickets for a studio tour. Then it was a trip to LA to participate in said studio tour.”

“Our brother is mourning the loss of the best thing that he ever had and you steal my car to go on a lot tour in LA? What the hell?”

“I was standing around with my thumbs up my ass, Dean. I can’t make him feel better. There’s nothing I can say, or do. I don’t have that unspoken ‘thing’ you have with him, Dean. But he sure can tell when I’m lying. So, I left, so I wouldn’t have to say what I’m thinking.”

“And what’s that?”

“I’m thinking that poor girl would still be alive if Sammy had never spoken to her. We’re poison, Dean, always have been. Winchesters get people killed. And if Sam had never fallen for her, she would still be alive.”

“You really think that?”

“Of course I do. Why do you think I took off? Standing outside the police station, trying to lend moral support? That is not my thing.”

“You gonna be able to keep that shit to yourself now that you had your little vacation?”

“Maybe. Maybe not. I don’t know. I hope.”

“Well, maybe… Maybe you shouldn’t be around Sammy until you know you can control that.” Dean whispered.

Marion closed her eyes at her twin’s words. She wished she wasn’t able to play him so well. She wished he would have surprised her and told her to keep quiet and stick around… but she’d known he’d react this way. When faced with the decision of her well-being versus Sam’s, Dean would always choose their little brother. She’d been counting on that.

“He’s in revenge mode right now and if you infect him with the idea that he got his girl killed… I don’t know what he’ll do.”

“He’ll do what dad did. Go crazy, get drunk and ruin everybody’s lives trying to find the thing that killed her, destroying himself in the process. I guess you’re right. I should back off. It’s better when it’s just you and Sammy, anyway, right?” Planned or not, it still hurt that Dean predictably fucked her over. “All that time I spent with Bobby… I’ve been an outsider in this family since I was 10 years old. Well, let me know if you find Dad… not that he’s really interested in talking to me.”

“You got an idea of where you’re going?”

“Bobby dropped a line earlier about a possible haunting in Florida. I passed on it, but I’ll call him back and see if he hasn’t given it to another hunter yet.” She’d already told Bobby she’d take the hunt.

“Florida? That far enough away?”

“You know, might not be, but it’s a damn fine place to start.” She threw up a peace sign and walked out the door.

“I’ll call when Sammy’s okay.” Dean said, walking to the door in order to shut it.

“And I might answer.” She shouted back from halfway across the parking lot.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

It didn’t take long for Marion to find, salt, and burn the bones of the woman haunting the crack heads shooting up in the poor woman’s old home. Then she headed to a bar.

“I believe you have something for me.” Crowley said, taking a seat next to her at the bar. She pulled a cheap flip phone out of her pocket and slid it over.

“It’s got unlimited text and call for a year.” She said.

Crowley pocketed it and looked around the bar. “You’re alone?”

“I’m on call, aren’t I? You made it pretty clear last time I saw you that I could either make myself available to you at all times, or you would find me a place in Hell to spend all my time. I chose the former. Can’t do that around my brothers, though, so… Here I go again, on my own.”

“How’d you manage?”

“I said some things I meant. I didn’t hold back and to save our baby brother’s fragile psyche, Dean told me to leave.”

“And he thinks it was his idea?”

Marion took a drink of her beer. “We’ve known each other since the womb, and I care enough about him to pay attention. He’ll never know it was my idea.”

“So, what is the plan here?”

“Hunt creatures, brand assholes, live life."

“Good. It’s best that you stay away from them.”

“You keep saying things like that. What does that mean? Is something going to happen to my brothers?"

Crowley cursed himself, but decided on honesty. “If I tell you, then you can never talk to your brothers ever again…” He said, leaning toward her. “and Lilith may just kill us both anyway for potentially fucking up her plans. Is knowing that important to you?”

“Is there anything you can tell me?”

Crowley took a deep breath. “You and your brothers have a destiny, and it’s bigger than just… hunting things. You are bafflingly important, and I wish it were easier, but your brothers’ lives are going to be turned upside down. I’d rather you were with me when that happens.”

“So, Lilith has a plan that’s going to turn our lives fucking crazy? Crazier? And that is all you can tell me? I’ve known you for 20 years. I’ve given a decade of my life to you and Lilith and you won’t even let me know what’s being planned for my family?”

“I can’t! Do you not understand? Lilith is in charge! Between her and that asshole, Azazel, they run Hell. If I tell you anything, they’ll kill us. I don’t even want to consider the types of torture they could come up with. Look, it’s not as bad as it seems and you are going to be with me, so it won’t affect you as much. Please, just lay it to rest for now.”

“What do you mean, I’m going to be with you?”

“Why must you question, Marion? You are going to stay in my mansion with me. Don’t worry, I’ll kick out the unnecessary support staff. I know how you feel about demons.”

“Do you?” She asked, seething.

“Well, it’s mixed, innit? Hate ‘em with a deep passion, but you can’t help the heat in your loins when I’m around.”

She took another sip of her beer to hide her blush. “Why would you want me to stay at your mansion, Crowley? I mean, can’t you just show up wherever I am, like you always do?”

“It’s so much easier when I don’t have to track you down, love. I could order you to move in, Marion. I’m trying not to force this.”

Marion shook her head. “I won’t make you force it. Only time I’ve ever been in a mansion, I was salting and burning the homeowner’s bones in the basement. I assume you’re actually gonna give me a room, right? Or am I gonna be sleeping in the kennel with your others pets?”

“Of course, there’s a room for you. It’s even got a bed. Juliet has taken to sleeping on the floor in there, but that should be okay. She isn’t the one that bit you, is she?”

“No, that would be Alpin, the boy. The girls all love me.”

“That’s good. I’ll keep the boy in the kennel. Finish that beer, we have a long drive.”


	5. Highway to Hell

She was 7 hours into her 20 hour drive when she got a call from Dean.

“Hey. Haven’t heard from you in weeks. Trying to pull a ‘Dad’ on me?”

“No. I’m trying to pull a ‘Sammy’. You know, I was told to stay away.”

“Look, I didn’t…”

“You did, D., but it’s fine. I totally understand. You need to spend time with Sam. He’s gone revenge horny and you have to be with him… without me. It’s cool. It’s been a long time since I’ve had some peace and quiet, so I’m okay with this. Just tell me that you guys are keeping safe.”

“Okay, well, what are you up to? Any interesting hunts on the horizon?”

“No. It’s all quiet on this end.” She said, soliciting a scoff from her demonic passenger.

“Sammy and I have been pretty busy. A wendigo a couple days ago, a kid haunting the families of the boys who killed him and we just got a call from Jerry Panowski. Remember him? The, uh, the polt…”

“Poltergeist, yeah. I remember him.”

“Yeah. There was a plane crash. He says there is something janky about it.”

“Oh, plane crash? Great, so you’re finally gonna try out those HSA credentials?”

“Maybe. How’d you know?”

“Just a good guess, I guess.”

“Hey… I, uh, it won’t be long. He’s still not sleeping, but I’ll get him back on track and we’ll be fine. All of us. We’ll find Dad. It’ll be like old times.”

“Gods, I hope not, Dean. If it’s gonna be like it was 5 years ago, I’d be better off just staying gone.”

“What’s that supposed to mean?” She’d been counting on Dean being offended.

“Do you really not remember, Dean? Ten years ago, Dad started ignoring me and got all paranoid about Sammy. The shouting matches between them started and he beat Sam more with his words than he ever beat me with his fists. I was already an outsider but once Dad started ignoring me and you went to defending Sam, I was invisible. If you and Sam find Dad and it’s all like it was before, then I would be happier alone.”

“Dad never hit you. I wish you wouldn’t say that. Neither me or Sam saw it. We lived in motel rooms, Mare. If Dad hit you, we would have seen.”

“You were so far up that man’s ass, you couldn’t see where his fists were! You didn’t want to see! And Sammy? Dad was good at keeping shit from him. Sammy didn’t even know where Dad went all the time until he was eight years old. Even Bobby knew. Why do you think he took me in, taught me how to defend myself? Not so I could hunt, that’s for damn sure. Look, you believe whatever the hell you want, D., but I will not be coming back to the same shit I dealt with for my whole life.” She said, before hanging up.

“Delusional, innit he?” Crowley asked.

“They both had blinders on for that time in our lives. And they always have blinders on when it come to each other. If nothing else, Crowley, this whole ‘staying away from my family’ thing has let me get some shit off my chest that I would never have said in the past.”

She wondered, sometimes, if it really was as bad as she remembered it to be. Maybe she had given herself to Crowley for nothing.

Crowley seemed to know where her mind had wandered. “I remember watching it happen, once. You were twelve. Mr. Singer had gone on a hunt and sent you back to your father. Dean left to chase a girl at the arcade down the street and Sam had fallen asleep reading. John came back to the motel, drunk on something cheap. You were watching the Flintstones, he felt you should have been working on your knife skills. He grabbed your collar and shook you. His drunken fingers lost their grip and you went flying into the tv.”

“When he pulled me off the ground, he pulled so hard that he dislocated my shoulder.” She whispered.

“Your brothers didn’t even ask why you were favoring your arm or why you couldn’t hear them with your right ear.”

“They noticed the tv was busted, though.” She chuckled. “You smoked into that biker at the next stop. I’ve never seen my Dad so bruised. Not from any hunt he’s ever been on.” She said with a smirk.

“They don’t remember anything because they don’t want to. But one day, they’ll know John for who he really is.”

She sighed in relief and reached out to pat Crowley’s knee. “Thank you… for putting an end to that.”

“That wasn’t me. That was… that was you, your deal.”

“You gave me a sweet deal compared to the idiots I mark.”

“I’m glad you are finally starting to remember that.”

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Crowley walked into his study while Marion got settled in her room. Suddenly, a demon wearing an old redneck appeared beside him.

“You’ve got one of my Winchesters.” The intruder said, eyes flashing yellow.

“No, I’ve got mine. Wanna read her contract?”

“I claimed the Winchesters before those brats were even born. The only reason you have that contract is because you were able to convince Lilith that she could help you get your numbers up. If it were up to me, she’d be dead.”

Crowley sighed and made a show of pouring his scotch. He’d heard this spiel before.

“She’s a wild card, Crowley. She could make us or break us, and I find the boys much easier to manipulate. Don’t think for a minute that you really have her under control. Contract or not, she’s a hunter.”

“She’s not just a hunter, Azazel, she’s a Winchester. Instill loyalty and they will follow you to the ends. I’ve got her just as long as her family keeps pushing her away. Wild card, tamed.”

“I hope you’re right.”

“Crowley… who’s this? Thought it was just gonna be you, me, and the hounds.” Marion asked, walking into the office.

“Can’t help the higher-ups coming to check on us, love. Marion, Azazel, Marion.” Crowley said, motioning between the two with his scotch glass.

Marion looked at Azazel for a moment before looking down. “I am not feeling very well. I’m gonna go lay down.” She said, before leaving the room.

Crowley was right behind her and as the door to her room closed, she turned to him with fury. “You’ve been lying to me… for years.”

“What do you mean?”

“I recognize him. Not the man, not the meat suit. The eyes. Those jaundice-looking, sickly yellow eyes. He’s the one who killed my mom, and Jess, right?” She didn’t give him time to answer. "Because they got in the way of whatever it is that asshole has planned for my brother and you want me to just sit back and be your house human? What kind of person would I be, what kind of hunter would I be, if I didn’t try to warn them? How can I sit here and play pretend like I’m your pet? Sit here, surrounded by the monsters manipulating my family to their own ends and not say anything?”

“Marion, please don’t make me…” Crowley’s eyes pleaded but she felt no pity.

“I won’t ever stop trying. Any chains you place on me, be they literal or metaphysical, I will break them. And you will have to explain to Lilith why you had to kill me. You might as well take me to Hell now, Fergus, because I’m never gonna stop.” She said, tears forming in her eyes.

A hand appeared on her shoulder as the redneck with the yellow eyes showed up behind her. “I thought you would never ask.”

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Marion woke up in a chair, drenched in sweat, the smell of sulfur pervading her senses. “You’ve brought a live one? How did you even manage?”

“It took some doing, but she’s here. No one can know she’s here. Oh, and you can’t let her die. Anything else is fair game, Alistair.”

“Can’t let her die? She’s a human in Hell. Why can’t I kill her?”

“Believe me, I feel your pain, but if she dies, she goes up.” Azazel jabbed two fingers upward. “And she knows a lot more about our plans than I want Heaven privy to. Just give her some of that potato soup you used to whip up for the Jews, keep the torture less than fatal and we’ll be fine.”

“So… You’re Crowley’s bitch.” Alistair said as Azazel disappeared. He walked over to her. “It’s been a long time since I had to worry about keeping a victim alive. It will definitely be a challenge down here. So, did you get caught with something you should have left alone? So curious, you humans.”

Marion looked at him defiantly but said nothing as he slowly brought a knife to her clavicle. “I love it when they think they can hold out. You think you’re strong. You’re a hunter, a soldier for your father’s cause, but in the end, you are just a fragile little girl in a vessel full of pain receptors… and I know how to activate every single one of them.”

“But you won’t.” She whispered, hopefully.

“And why wouldn’t I?”

“Because… you need to keep me alive. If you torture me the way you want, I’ll go into shock and I’ll die. I’ll have no hope, no reason to try to hang on. If you put me in a position where I might have any say in whether I live or die, I will choose to die, and you can’t let that happen. So, you’ll have to go soft on the torture, Al.”

“You’re right, of course, but I have all the time I need to slowly break every part of you. And unlike every other soul in this place, you won’t be made whole again at the next dawn.” He said, before slicing a shallow cut from her clavicle to her navel. She cried out in agony.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Over the course of the next several decades, Marion spent more time alone than anything. Every couple of years, Azazel would show up to see if she was still alive and to monitor her mental state. Lilith showed up twice just to taunt her, and Alistair showed up every few days to torture her or give her something to sustain herself. She never saw Crowley, and she didn’t think she wanted to.

She’d gone mostly quiet, except her screams. She thought she’d forgotten how to speak, until the day Azazel walked into her cell with a guest in tow. Marion’s eyes widened at the sight of her father. His soul, anyway.

“Dad?” She whispered, her voice hoarse.

“I’m glad I got to see this family reunion. It’s not every day we get to see something so touching in Hell.” Azazel quipped.

“Marion, what are you… your brothers have been looking for you for months.”

Tears welled up in Marion’s eyes at the thought that she’d only missed several months on Earth, while she’d spent a century in Hell, alone.

“It’s been quite a bit longer for poor Mary. And, to answer for her, since I know this is all a bit overwhelming, she fell in with a bad crowd, John. Made friends with a demon. A pissant little crossroads demon. Between that and her nosy Winchester nature, we had to shove her deep into the Pit. It was the only way to maintain the plan.” Azazel explained.

“Friends with a demon? What is he talking about?” John asked, his voice full of accusations. Marion looked down.

“He saved my life, before any of this hunting bullshit, before I ever even knew about monsters.” She whispered. She closed her eyes. “We were at the park when we were four. Dean begged and pleaded and finally convinced you to get us ice cream from the cart. I was more interested in a butterfly, this pretty yellow one. It flew across the street, so I chased it. There was a truck, it would have flattened me like a pancake, but Crowley pulled me back just in time.”

Marion looked up. “He disappeared so quickly that I thought he was fake, that I’d saved myself somehow, but I saw him again after the fire. He told me when I was 9 that he was a demon, but… He’d always been so good to me, it didn’t matter.”

“Here’s my favorite part, John.” Azazel cut in.

“He saved my life on several hunts.” Her voice was coming a little bit stronger, but much more hoarse for her effort. “And When you started hurting me, I knew I could count on him to stop it. But I didn’t want him to hurt you to get the job done. I knew it was the alcohol and the stress and the sadness you felt at how much I had started to look like Mom. So, to stop it, without hurting you, I made a deal. I agreed to help Crowley find the people who try to run from the Hounds, and he makes me invisible to you when you’re drunk. That’s why you never noticed me anymore, because you’re always drunk when you aren’t hunting.”

“You sold your soul?”

“No, I sold my life. You sold your soul. Which one did you do it for?”

John looked away. “Dean was dying. I had to.”

“Because somebody’s got to stop Sammy, right? You would’ve done it yourself if you thought you could, but no, you leave it to his brother.”

“I just gave up my life and my soul for your brother! What else can I give?”

“Nothing now.” She said, looking at Alistair and Azazel. “Just… don’t give in to them. Don’t do what they want you to, no matter the torture. Just… don’t!” Marion managed to frantically say before Azazel punched her hard in the side of her head.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

She’d woken up alone and stayed that way for a while. Alistair had stopped coming to torture her, but gallons of water, buckets of ’potato soup’ and vitamin pills kept showing up, actually with an increased frequency.

So, when her cell door opened and a form slinked in, she almost felt up to whatever fight was coming.

Crowley turned around and surveyed the scene. If he hadn’t known he was in the right place, he wouldn’t have recognized her. She was 75 pounds soaking wet, she was covered in dirt and dried blood. There were hash marks on the wall, seemingly drawn in blood. A quick count told him there were 365 of them. More than half of them had a circle around it. Days and years. He heard a shuddering sigh as he walked forward.

“You never came.” She whispered.

“It took me this long just to find you, Pony.” He used a nickname from her youth to put her at ease. “You think Azazel would tell me where he put the only thing…” He faltered.

“…worth taking from me?” He finished, walking forward and pulling her shackles to break the links. “I spent decades trying to find you, couldn’t be blatant about it, called in favors from people that I’d been holding for centuries. Come on, stand up.”

“Do I look like I can stand?” She whispered.

“Well, if you wanna get out of here, you’re gonna find the will to walk, sweetheart.”

“Out?”

“Out. Out of Hell. A lot’s happened since you’ve been gone. Sam died, Dean sold his soul at a crossroads, and now the tin soldier who killed Baby Brother is on the way to open the Gates of Hell and let everyone out. Samantha and Dean are on their way to stop him but I’m sure he’ll get the gates open for a while, at least. I’m going to draw you a map. Soldier Boy is gonna open that gate in about 9 hours.” Crowley pulled out a familiar piece of paper and turned it over, drawing a map.

He handed her the map, making sure she could see that it was drawn on her contract. “You make it there. You don’t get caught. You make it here.” He pointed to the far point on the map. “You make it topside and you burn the map. Azazel and Lilith can’t bring you back without the clause in your contract saying your body can cross over into Hell. Get topside, burn the map. Understand?”

She nodded. “Topside. Burn it.”

“Good luck, Pony.” He said, before disappearing.

She took a shaky step toward the door and sent an unaddressed prayer upward. “Please, let me get there safe.”


	6. Hello and Goodbye

Marion found her way, slowly, slinking through the shadows of Hell. She made it to the end of the map and was faced with a metal ladder. “Climbing. Of course, there’s climbing.” She said, folding her map and stuffing it in the decayed fabric that used to be her bra, and starting to pull herself slowly up the ladder.

“Got no muscle. Got no energy. Of course, I gotta climb a fucking ladder.” She whispered, as she heard noises above her.

Smoke-form demons were swirling above her now, waiting for the door. She was only halfway up the ladder when the doors were pushed open. Unfortunately, it wasn’t long before they began to be pushed closed.

“Oh, god, please.” She whimpered, pulling herself up with all her might.

A rush of light came up from behind her and latched under her arms, pulling her free from the metal rungs and depositing her on the grass outside the gate, just as it was pushed closed. She lay on her back with her eyes closed and took her first breath of fresh cool air in 240 years. The grass felt so cold and soft compared to the hot stone she’d spent the last couple centuries on. Then she heard the pump of a shotgun loading, and she knew a hunter was standing over her, about to blow her away.

“Ellen, wait! That’s… I think that’s… holy heck, that’s Marion. Just… hold the damn gate.” A familiar voice said, before she was enveloped in a warm embrace and her senses were flooded by the scents of whiskey, gunpowder, and oil. Bobby.

She cried the few tears her body would relinquish but her body continued to be wracked with sobs, even when no more salt water would drop. She heard a gun shot and a few moments later the noise died down. Daring to pull back a little and look up, she saw her brothers and two women standing around Bobby, who was staring down at her with that fatherly worry. Dean looked scared and angry, but Sam just looked confused. The older woman still had her shotgun ready to shoot Marion if it came to that.

“You were in Hell? Why the fuck?”

“Dean…” Bobby warned.

“I’ll explain everything after.” Marion whispered.

“After what?” The older woman, Ellen, asked.

“After I regain…” She drifted as she lost consciousness. The adrenaline was gone and it took any energy she had.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Marion woke slowly. She could tell she was laying somewhere soft, with two separate cushions underneath her. Bobby’s couch, most likely. She could hear coffee mugs and a coffee pot being moved in a room to her left. Bobby’s kitchen. She kept her eyes closed, afraid that if she opened them, she’d immediately be questioned.

She took the time to cover her bases in her head, and to slowly run her hand across her chest to confirm her contract was still where she’d left it, before blinking open her eyes. She tried to slowly sit up but her destroyed muscles wouldn’t allow it. Bobby rushed to her side.

“Hey, hey, slow down, girl.” He whispered, soothingly. He helped her sit up, grabbing some pillows as support behind her back. She offered him a weak smile in return.

"So, what happened to you? No offense, but you look like a Holocaust survivor.” Dean said, walking up with a mug and handing it to Sam.

She chuckled lightly, an unfamiliar sound that hurt her throat. “The demon who did this to me bragged about possessing a Nazi in Poland, so… I kind of am.”

She closed her eyes, keeping them open was too much effort. “I was on a hunt. I stumbled upon some yellow-eyed demon talking about his plan for Sam and kids like him. He said he was gathering them and the one who rose above would be used for some big plan. He said he’d been manipulating you from the day Mom died.” She took a deep breath and continued.

“He saw me. He knew who I was, knew I’d try to warn you, so he took me to Hell to keep me from being able to ruin the plan.”

“Not that we ain’t grateful and all, Marion, but why didn’t he just kill you?” Bobby asked.

“Said if I died, I’d go to Heaven and the angels or whoever is up there would know the plan. Had to keep me alive. Boy, Nazi demons sure do know how to just barely keep someone alive.”

“Better be glad demons are superstitious. The thought of Heaven kept you alive.” Dean scoffed.

“Hell’s real enough. Why wouldn’t Heaven be?” Sam asked.

“If Heaven were real, an innocent woman would never have been in Hell for 2 years.” Dean said.

Marion chuckled. “2 years. If only. Time runs… so much slower up here. I was in that cell for 239 years. I counted every day.” She was trying to keep the bitterness out of her voice, but it wasn’t working. “If I’d been fed, if I could’ve moved, I would have pulled an Edmond Dantes and come out a better person, but for all that time, I’ve got nothing but scars to show. All I could do was meditate.”

“Speaking of being fed. You must be starving.” Dean said, heading for the kitchen.

“Wait!” She called, weakly. “My metabolism is used to getting less than 500 calories a day, Dean. I’ve been in preservation mode for a couple centuries now. If I start eating normally, it will kill me. Let’s start with a cup of coffee, little bit of cream, little of sugar.”

“I feel like you need a hospital, Marion. This… is a lot for home medics.” Sam said.

“And tell them, what, at the hospital? She’s been in Hell, Sam. There ain’t a clinic for folk who pop out of Hell damaged and we can’t afford the attention from the damned police.” Bobby growled.

“Look, Sam. I don’t need a hospital. You’re still our research guy, right? Why don’t you research muscle rehabilitation for me? Find out what they do for folks in similar situations. Holocaust, kidnapping victims who escape, anorexia rehab. How do I get my muscle back and get back in the field?”

“What do you mean ‘back in the field’? No. You aren’t hunting.”

“Of course, I am, D. I saw what escaped from those gates before I got out. The number of demons on Earth just went up 100 fold. We need as many hands on deck as possible, and, you know what, for the first time ever, I’m older than you and you don’t have a say.” She took a deep breath and turned back to Sam. “I know that there are programs. Tell me what I can do and we’ll do it.”

She then turned to Bobby. “Hey, Bobby, can you take me over near the fire? I’m freezing.”

“Dean, can you take care of her? I’m gonna help Sam.”

Dean leaned down and picked Marion up with no effort, placing her next to the fireplace and sitting next to her.

“So, does Sammy know, yet?” Marion whispered.

“Yeah. He figured it out about the time Jake looked at him and said, ‘I killed you’. Couldn’t really deny it.”

“He’s smart. He’ll be trying to keep you out of the fire. But, Dean… He won’t be able to keep you out of Hell.”

“Yeah, well, if you could survive it, maybe so can I. Maybe I can even find a way to climb out.”

“It won’t be the same for you.” She said, bluntly.

“What?”

“This… the deprivation, the solitude, these are things they did to me as torture because their normal methods would not have kept me alive. You won’t be afforded the same. You will be a soul, Dean, and you will die every day for eternity.”

She looked to her brother and debated whether or not to continue. Her throat told her to stop, as it went dry and tried to prevent sound, but her heart overrode it. “There’s a difference, you know, in how a person screams the first time they get cut and how they scream when all their pain receptors are already going. It got to where I could hear that difference. Hell runs like a machine. You can set a clock by it. Or count the days. When I heard the screams of the new cuts, I’d mark the wall. You will be a soul, and they will torture you and kill you every day, in an attempt to twist your soul, make you one of them. And it can happen so quickly. Between the time running faster and the terrible torture, you might come back to us a year later, wearing some poor jerk as a meat suit and try to kill us. And I wouldn’t blame you for any of it, except selling your soul and getting shafted in the negotiations.”

“Didn’t get-”

“A year, Dean. On my way out, I heard this bitch bragging about it, how she got you to sign for a year.”

He sighed. “I needed Sammy back. It’s my job to protect him.”

“And he’s gonna research his ass off to save you. That’s his job.” Dean nodded. “And I hope you don’t hold this against me, Dean, but… I’m not going to burn myself trying to keep you out of the fire. I spent too long covered in flame.”

“I get it.”

“And I get that you only have a year left and you aren’t gonna sit around wasting it, watching your broken sister rehab her emaciated body. I just ask that when it comes down to the wire and Sammy throws that Hail Mary to save you, that you call me, because it’s my job to be there for him when it fails.”

“I promise.”

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

A year later, Marion answered her phone. “Hey. Down to the wire… Sam’s got a Hail Mary. We’ve got a knife, it kills demons. We’re on the way to try to gank the bitch. New Harmony, Indiana. Can you get there?”

“I’m in Texas. I think I can get there in 12.”

“All right. We’ll try not to start without you.”

Marion realized, as she watched her brothers sneaking around this neighborhood hiding from demons, from her car, that she fit in in suburbia much better than they did. Even if the demons hadn’t been on alert, they would’ve stuck out. As Dean disappeared around the corner of a house, she got out and headed over.

She watched quietly from a corner as Sam and Dean talked to a blond woman. Something was off about her, but Marion couldn’t put her finger on it.

“You’ll get it when this is over.” Sam said.

“It’s already over.” The blond rebutted. “I gave you a way to save Dean, you shot me down. Now, it’s too late. He’s dead. And I’m not gonna let you die, too.”

Marion knew, then, why the blond made her uneasy. A demon. Something familiar about it.

“Try and stop me, and I’ll kill you. Bitch.” Sam growled.

“Hit me with your best shot, baby.”

“What is this? Are you working with demons, now?” Marion asked, turning the corner and walking up to them.

The blond smirked. “Like you have any room to talk.”

“You shut your whore mouth.” Marion said, through clenched teeth.

The blond laughed. “They don’t know!”

“Know what?” Dean asked.

The demon turned to Dean. “Why she was sent to the Pit. She overheard something she shouldn’t have, while in the process of _working_ with a _demon_. A low-level crossroads demon, who unlike me, is not reformed. The only way they could even bring her to Hell was the clause in her contract allowing it.”

“What?” Sam and Dean exclaimed in a combined stage whisper.

“Don’t you dare judge me! I didn’t sell my soul.” Marion rubbed a knuckle across her eyebrow. “You know… you might not believe this, but that demon saved my life more times than I can count. In his own weird demonic way, he cared for me.” She looked between her brothers. “He once called me the only thing he had worth taking. I knew him for 12 years before I ever considered making a deal with him. If it weren’t for him, I’d still be in Hell. He drew me a map to the Devil’s Gate on the back of my contract and told me to burn it when I got home, so they could never take me back.”

“Yeah? What’d you give him, then?” Dean asked, coldly.

“My work. He was losing people. Folks were skipping out and he wasn’t powerful enough to get topside whenever he wanted in order to help the hounds find their targets. He needed someone who could walk through a Devil’s Trap and salt lines in order to give the dogs their direction.”

“So, you helped sentence people to Hell?” Dean asked, almost growling the words.

“No. They sentenced themselves. I just helped make sure they held their end up.”

“And what’d you get for it? What was worth that?” Sam asked.

“Dad stopped hitting me, didn’t he?” Marion said, turning to look at her twin, challengingly.

“But we were 16 when that happened. You telling me you met this guy when we were 4?” Dean asked.

Marion just stared at him, wide-eyed. “You remember? And you’ve been telling me for years that I was making it up? Made me think I was crazy… made me doubt.”

“Shit.” Dean looked from Marion to Sam. “Sammy was already talking shit about the man by the time you got the balls to talk to me about Dad. He was questioning his authority. I couldn’t have you adding shit to the pile, there, so I told you that you were imagining it so that you’d stow it.”

“I get it, I really do. Protect Sammy and idolize the old man were always the biggest parts of your personality.” She said, bitterly, before turning to the blond. “But I’ll tell ya something, Dean. I’ve had a relationship with a demon since we were 4 years old, and I spent 2 centuries in Hell and I’ve never heard of a reformed demon.”

“Well, now you have. Name’s Ruby and I’ve saved your brothers’ asses on multiple occasions.”

“I’m sure Azazel would thank you if he was still alive.”

“Guys, guys. Have your little cat fight later.” Dean said, pulling their attention to the neighborhood, where several demons were standing around, staring at them with black eyes.

"So much for the element of surprise." Dean said.

"Let's go. Go. Run. Run!" Sam said, pushing the gate open and running toward the house Lilith had taken.

Sam started working to pick the lock as Dean looked around at all the demons. "What the hell's takin' Bobby?"

The twins and Ruby turned to look at Sam, obviously having trouble with the lock. "Get a move on, Sam. Demons closing in." Marion growled.

"I'm trying!"

Marion watched as demons started to run at them across the lawn, sprinklers springing up and spraying them with water. The water seemed to burn, causing them to scream and flail their arms. She chuckled as Sam finally made it past the lock. Dean laughed loudly seemingly in the faces of the demons before patting his sister on the back and walking into the house behind Ruby. Marion closed the door, looking down at a dead man.

"You think Lilith knows we're here?" Dean asked.

"Probably." Ruby answered, before they started to walk silently through the house, Ruby following Sam, Dean following behind Marion and Marion not letting Ruby out of her sight. She turned as a man jumped out of a cabinet and Dean grabbed him, hand going over his mouth.

Dean shushed him before whispering, "We're here to help. Okay? I'm gonna move my hand, and we're gonna talk nice and quiet, okay?" The man nodded his head and Dean removed his hand slowly.

Sam spoke up from behind Ruby. "Sir, where is your daughter?"

"It's not... it's not her anymore."

"Where is she?" Sam asked.

"Upstairs. In her bedroom."

"Okay, okay, okay. Listen to me. I want you to go downstairs to the basement. Put a line of salt at the door behind you. Do you understand me?" Dean said, his arm still around the man.

"Not without my wife." The man said, quickly.

"Yes, without your wife." Marion whispered.

"No, not-" The man started to respond, but Dean punched him, causing him to pass out. He picked the man up and slung him over his shoulder. He threw a look at the others before walking away. Marion followed him, stopping in the kitchen to grab a salt grinder from the table.

Dean dropped the man on the floor of the basement and Marion pulled the top off of the salt grinder and made a salt line at the door. They stepped over the line, slowly heading up the stairs to the girl's room. Sam stood over the girl, psyching himself up to stab the child. Marion focused in on the little girl's face. "She's not-"

Dean nodded, rushing forward to grab Sam's arm. "It's not her! It's not in the girl, anymore."

Sam's breath was coming in heavy as the ramifications of what might have happened hit him. The mother wrapped her arms around the girl and picked her up, heading out of the room.

"All right, no mater what you hear; you, your husband and your daughter stay in the basement." Dean ordered the woman, who just nodded and went down the stairs into the basement. Dean followed her down, and Marion walked behind Sam and Ruby.

"Well, I hate to be a 'told you so'." Ruby quipped.

"All right, Ruby. Where is she?" Sam asked.

"I don't know." She answered, entering the living room.

"Could she get past the sprinklers?"

"Her pay grade, she ain't sweating the holy water."

Sam turned to her. "Okay, you win. What do I have to do?"

Ruby tilted her head, questioningly. "What do you mean?"

"To save Dean." Sam said as Dean walked up behind him, standing next to Marion. "What do you need me to do?"

Dean grabbed his shoulder and tried to turn him. "What the hell do you think you're doing?"

Sam didn't let himself be turned. "Just shut up for a second. Ruby!"

"You had your chance. You can't just flip a switch. We needed time."

"Well, there's gotta be something. There's gotta be some way. Whatever it is, I'll do it."

Marion leaned back against the wall as Dean grabbed their brother.

"Don't- Dean. I'm not gonna let you go to Hell, Dean!"

"Yes, you are!" Dean shouted. "Yes, you are."

"I'm sorry. I mean, this is all my fault, I know that. But what you are doing, it's not gonna save me. It's only gonna kill you." Dean finished, calmly.

"Then, what am I supposed to do?"

Dean let out a sad breath. "Keep fighting. And take care of my wheels. Sam, remember what Dad taught you... okay?" Sam nodded, his eyes filling with tears. "And remember what I taught you."

Marion watched her brothers fighting back their tears. She looked at her feet, the only way to hold back her own. Her eyes shot back up as a grandfather clock on the opposite wall started to chime midnight. Her brothers looked around and at each other as teas started rolling down Sam's cheeks.

"I'm sorry, Dean." Ruby said. "I wouldn't wish this upon my worst enemy."

Marion and Dean both turned their heads toward the dining room as a growling sound met their ears. Dean's face fell as his eyes fell upon the dog. "Hellhound." The twins said.

"Where?" Sam asked.

"There." Dean said, nodding slightly toward the archway into the dining room.

Ruby's eyes fell on the hound, as well. The hound barked, loudly, and Dean ran. Marion fell behind as they ran through the hallway, ending up behind the hound as it pushed past her to get at Dean. She watched as the hound pounded itself into the door as Ruby and Sam held the doors. Goofer dust poured through under the door, and the hound stopped, pacing back and forth a few times before turning and looking at Marion. Sam and Dean stared at her through the window as she put her hands up. She shook a little as the hound pattered toward her. "H-hey. You-you're a pretty dog. Almost as big as... as Fergus' favorite. She's called... she's Juliet. Yeah... she's... huge. You've got big teeth."

Marion shook her head at her brothers as the knob started to move on the office door. She put her hand out and spoke soothingly to the hound. "I smell a lot like your target, don't I? That's 'cause we were in the womb together. I've got another smell on me, though, right? One you recognize. See?" She breathed out, steadily toward the hound's face. The hound whined and barked. She jumped and laughed in shock. "Sit." She ordered.

"Sam, that's not Ruby. It's not Ruby!" Dean shouted from the office.

Marion clicked her tongue, trying to keep the hound's attention on her. "Stay with me, puppy. Right here. This is a Winchester with sulfur in her lungs. Much more interesting than a noise in an office, right? Stay with me."

Her hand shook as she patted its head and listened to the sounds of the fight in the office. She should have known. She knew that face. She knew that ugly familiar visage.

"And Marion..." Lilith said, raising her voice so that it could be heard through the door, easily. "I'm surprised to see you here. I thought you were locked up in the bowels of Hell."

Marion didn't respond, working to keep the attention of the hound. That didn't last long, though, because she couldn't keep the hound's attention as Lilith opened the door and said, "Sic 'em, boy."

Marion watched as the hound barreled in and grabbed Dean from the table with its jaws and slashing him to pieces. She closed her eyes tightly as blood poured out of her twin and he screamed.

"No! Stop!" Sam shouted. "STOP IT! No! No. Stop it. STOP IT! NO!"

"Yes." Lilith said, happily. Marion opened her eyes as white light poured out of Lilith's hand. She watched Lilith's face as she realized that Sam was still alive. She put her hand up as Sam walked forward. "Back! I said, back!"

Sam bent down to pick up the Kurdish knife as Marion ran to grab the demon. "I don't think so." He growled, pulling back to stab her, but Lilith threw Ruby's head back and shrieked out a plume of black smoke into the vent above her. As Ruby's body fell to the floor, Sam turned to look at Dean. He dropped the knife as Marion put a hand over her mouth, trying to hold in a sob. Sam dropped to his knees, pulling Dean into his lap. "No... no... Dean... Dean, please."

Marion shook her head, putting a hand on Sam's shoulder and closing her eyes to shut out the image of her twin torn to pieces. No tears pulled from her eyes. "Sam... we have to go. Pick him up and let's go."

Sam nodded, standing and carrying Dean out of the house without a word as tears rolled down his face. Bobby met them in the yard. "Damn it!"

"Come on. We gotta... get wood. Make a pyre." Marion whispered.

"No." Sam said, walking to the car.

"What do you mean, 'No'? Son, we need to salt and burn him so he don't come back a ghost."

"He's gonna need a body when I get him back." Sam said.

"No. Sam... Hunters get burned. Salted and burned so that they don't end up killing people as ghosts later." Marion argued.

"I'm not gonna let you burn him. I will find a way to bring him back and he's gonna need a body. You and... and Bobby need to... find a casket. Dean and I... we're gonna go on one last ride." Sam said, getting into the driver's seat of the Impala and pulling out quickly.


	7. Lazarus Rising

Marion had left on the heels of Sam, but hadn't been able to find him. She'd given up after a month of no news and headed to Louisiana. New Orleans was full of witchcraft and monsters, enough to keep her occupied most days.

Her phone rang on a hot day off, while she lied out by the pool of her extended stay motel. The number was displayed, but she didn't know it. "Hello?"

"Marion, it's Dean. Please don't hang up." A hoarse voice begged.  
        
"Name the dog." She said. The voice was her brother's, hoarse or not, so it obviously wasn't Dean as a demon. Now she had to make sure it wasn't a revenant or ghoul. It was a code they'd devised when the twins were 10. They could always make sure they were really talking to each other if they could name the stuffed dog they'd shared when they lived in Lawrence.  
        
"Name the... fuck. The beagle.... Uh. Darwin! Darwin! The dog's name is Darwin."  
          
"The dog _is_ Darwin. So... how did you manage to escape in only 40 years?"  
      
"I don't even know, Marion. One minute, I'm at a slab with Alistair standing there and then I wake up under the dirt."  
        
"Did you come up where we buried you, or what?"  
      
"Looks like Illinois. I'm gonna steal a car and head to Bobby's. Can you meet me there?"  
      
"Yeah, I'll head up that way, but I am in New Orleans, so it's gonna take me a while. I'll catch a flight. It'll take me 18 hours if I drive."  
       
"What, you drive the speed limit, now?" Dean joked. "All right. Where is Sam? I tried to call."  
      
"I don't know. After I made it clear that I was not going to help him try to get you out, he ditched me. Won't answer my calls. Far as I know he isn't doing much talking to anyone."  
        
"All right. I will see you at Bobby's and we will try to figure all this out."  
       
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Marion knocked at Bobby's door and waited. Dean was the one who opened it, looking out at her. "You got here before me." She said, with a smile.

Dean pulled her into a tight hug. "Not by much. Sister, it is good to see you." He pulled away and looked at her. "You put on more muscle weight since I've been gone. You look good."

She chuckled, nodding. "Yeah. My extended stay motel in N'awlins had a gym. I've been working on it." Her eyes fell on his arm, just above his left elbow, where a shallow cut was. "I see I missed the silver knife test. Did he get you with holy water, too?"

Dean nodded, pushing her inside. "Yep. I'm about to grab a shower. Then, we're gonna work on finding Sam." He cleared his throat and looked over at her from the stairs. "Hey, just, uh, making sure... you didn't do this, right? Like, you didn't call up your old demon buddy and cash in a favor?"

Marion shook her head. "I haven't spoken to him since _I_ was still in Hell, Dean, and I definitely don't have any favors owed. We pretty much balanced the ledger when he got me out of Hell."

Dean nodded. "Had to make sure." He said before heading towards the bathroom.

Marion smiled at Bobby, as she walked into the library. "How you doin', girl?"

She shook her head. "I'm kinda... 'confused' is a good word to use."

"You ain't the only one." Bobby responded. "You hungry? I was gonna throw together some sandwiches."

"You got supplies? It kinda looks like you... need a grocery run." She said, eyeing the empty whiskey bottles.

"I got peanut butter, I got jelly and... hot dog buns."

Marion laughed. "Man, Bobby. I missed you. Let me run to the store while Dean showers off his dirt, sweat and blood. I'll get some real bread. Maybe some bologna and Kraft singles."

"Pick up some-" Bobby started.

"Yes, sir. Hunter's Helper on the way." She said, before blowing a kiss to the older hunter and heading back out the door.

**********************************

Dean must've showered until the hot water tank went ice cold, because he was just getting out of the bathroom when Marion returned with food.

"I bought pie!" She shouted up the stairs before heading into the kitchen.

"You're amazing." Dean said, walking up behind her. "Apple?"

"Cherry."

"Awesome."

"Bobby is making bologna and cheese. Pie after."

"Man, I do what I want."

"Boy, eat a damn sandwich, first."

Dean rolled his eyes and grabbed a sandwich from the table. He took a bite and moaned his appreciation. "Damn. It's the simple things, you know? A bologna and cheese after coming back from the dead."

Marion chuckled. "You know what he made me once I finally got to a place where I could eat real food again?" Dean shrugged. "Spaghetti. But he didn't have any sauce, so I had the option of ketchup or butter."

Her chuckle became a giggle. "So, he tossed it in some melted butter, and sprinkled garlic powder over the top. It was the best spaghetti I've ever had."

Dean nodded, scarfing down the sandwich, before grabbing the pie off of the counter. He dug out a hunk of pie and punched the air. "'ish is the besht pie ever!" He said, around the mouthful.

"There's a bakery on Main. I went there just for you." Marion said, patting him on the back.

Dean smiled and grabbed a mug, pouring in coffee and knocking back a gulp. "All right. Now, let's track down the giant." Dean said, pulling Bobby's corded phone off the counter and dialing the number for Arc Mobile's customer service. "Yeah, hi, I have a cell phone account with you guys, and uh, I lost my phone. I was wondering if you could turn the GPS on for me. Yeah. Name's Wedge Antilles. Social is 2-4-7-4. Thank you." Dean said, before hanging up and walking into the study.

"How'd you know he'd use that name?" Bobby asked.

He sat at Bobby's desk and pulled up Arc's website on his desktop computer. "You kiddin' me? What _don't_ I know about that kid? Hey, Bobby?" Dean picked up an empty whiskey bottle and examined it. "What the deal with the liquor store? What, are your parents out of town or something?"

"Like I said. Last few months ain't been all that easy."

Dean stared at the man for a minute before his attention turned back to the screen. "Right. Sam's in Pontiac, Illinois."

"Right near where you were buried." Marion gasped.

"Right where I popped up. Hell of a coincidence, don't you think?" Dean asked.

"Okay, so... let's go get the Sasquatch." Marion said, pulling her keys out of her pocket. "Who's driving?"

**********************************************

Marion walked up to the desk in the Astoria Hotel and flashed her U.S. Marshals badge at the man behind the counter. "How you doin'? I'm Agent Jett with the U.S. Marshal Service. I'm tracking a fugitive and I think he might be in your hotel. Not sure the name he might be under, but he's about 6 foot 4, sandy blond hair. Kinda comes across like... lumberjack. Plaid flannel and work boots. Anyone matching that-"

"Room 207." The clerk answered.

"Thank you, so much." She said, before walking outside. "Okay. 207. Let's go"

They walked down the hallway and stopped in front of the door with '207' in a red heart. Dean pounded his hand on the door and took a slight step back as a brunette woman in a white tank top and underwear answered. She looked between them expectantly while Marion's eyes narrowed at her. "So, where is it?" The brunette asked.

Dean looked over at Bobby. "Where's what?"

"The pizza... that takes three people to deliver?"

"I think we got the wrong room." Dean replied.

"Hey, is-" Sam asked, walking out of the bathroom. His face went serious as his eyes fell on Dean. He swallowed, thickly, his eyes moving between the hunters in the hallway.

"Heya, Sammy." Dean all but whispered. He walked forward, as the brunette pushed herself out of the way. As Dean got closer, Sam took a deep breath and pulled a knife. He pushed Dean into the wall by the door as the brunette screamed. Marion and Bobby rushed in and pulled Sam off.

"Who are you?!" Sam shouted.

"Like you didn't do this?!" Dean shouted back.

"Do what?"

"It's him. It's him. I've been through this already, it's _really_ him." Bobby said.

"Silver, holy water, he named the dog, it's him." Marion said.

Sam stopped struggling as he stared at his brother. "But..." He panted.

"I know." Dean said, cautiously moving forward. "I look fantastic, huh?"

Bobby and Marion pulled away from Sam and watched as the brothers embraced, tightly. Bobby blinked at the tears in his eyes, but Marion was looking at the brunette who was still standing at the door. "So, are you two, like... together?"

"What? No. No. He's my brother." Sam answered as Dean scoffed.

"Oh. Got it... I guess. Look, I should probably go." She said, walking over to a pile of her clothes.

"Yeah. Yeah, that's probably a good idea. Sorry." Sam said.

Marion patted Sam on the back and walked toward the door. "I'm gonna be right back. I gotta grab something from the car." She said. Dean nodded at her as she closed the door behind her.

She waited in the parking lot, leaned against the hood of Bobby's beat up old car. The brunette walked out, much more clothed than last time she saw her about 5 minutes later. "It's nice to meet you, Ruby. You were Lilith in a blond when I met you before. Unfortunately, I can see you."  
        
"Still marked then?" Ruby shot back, her eyes going black. "Why didn't you give me up while I was upstairs?"

"Because demon doesn't necessarily mean 'gonna completely fuck us over'. But whatever it was that you were doing with my brother..." She stepped forward, menacingly. "You're done, now. Dean is back. Sammy doesn't need you. Go away and we don't have to have discuss what you've been doing with my brother or what you have gotten him into while he's been AWOL."  
        
"You know, you're freakishly tall for a woman." Ruby said, looking up at her. "I can do that for now, but Sam's need for revenge won't be gone just because big brother pulled himself out of the flames. Lilith needs to die and Sam is addicted to the thought of being the one to put her down."  
        
Marion started to walk back into the hotel. "5'8" ain't that tall. Short little vessel you got there. At least the blond was hot enough for Sammy. Maybe you should reclaim that one. This one is a real butter-face."


	8. Rising

Marion knocked lightly on the door when she got back up to the room. Sam opened it for her and immediately handed her a beer. "Hey, Sammy."

"Hey." He said, apprehensively.

She gave him a smile that said his secret was safe with her and put the beer to her lips. Sam sat down across from Bobby, next to Dean. "Anyways, uh, I was checking these demons out of Tennessee, and out of nowhere they took a hard left, booked up here."

"When?" Dean asked.

"Yesterday morning."

"When I busted out."

"You think these demons are here 'cause of you?" Bobby asked.

"But why?" Sam and Marion asked.

"Well, I don't know. Some badass demon drags me out and now this? It's gotta be connected somehow."

"How you feelin', anyway?" Bobby asked.

"I'm a little hungry." Dean replied.

"No, I mean... do you feel like yourself? Anything strange or different?"

"Or demonic?" Dean finished, irritated. "Bobby, how many times do I have to prove I'm me?"

Marion sat next to Bobby as he started, "Yeah. Well. Listen, no demon's letting you loose out of the goodness of their hearts. They've gotta have something nasty planned."

"Unless he made friends down there." Marion added. Everyone turned to her. She shrugged. "Fergus let me out without anything in return. Out of the goodness of his heart, as you said. Nothing nasty planned."

Dean scoffed. "Well I didn't make any friends and I feel fine."

"Okay, look, we don't know what they're planning. We got a pile of questions and no shovel. We need help." Sam said.

"I know a psychic. A few hours from here. Something this big, maybe she's heard the other side talking." Bobby said.

"Hell yeah, it's worth a shot."

"I'll be right back." Bobby said, pulling out his phone and walking away.

Dean stood, as well. "Hey wait." Sam said, standing. "You probably want this back." Sam reached into the collar of his shirt and pulled out Dean's necklace, placing it in his hand.

Dean looked touched as he said, "Thanks."

"Yeah, don't mention it." Dean put the necklace over his head. "Hey, Dean, what was it like?"

"What? Hell? I don't know, I, I must have blacked it out. I don't remember a damn thing." Dean said, nonchalantly. Marion studied his face. She wouldn't call him a liar, but... she didn't think that was true.

"Well, thank God for that." Sam said.

"If you're curious... I've got some-" Marion started, but her brothers just shook their heads. "Yeah, didn't think so."

*******************************

Walking down the stairs with her family, she was struck with the question of her youth; go with Bobby, or play a backseat to her brothers?

"You riding with them?" Bobby asked, quietly.

She shrugged. "You guys need more time alone to catch up on the bromance, or what?" She asked, loudly. Sam and Dean turned to her at the entrance of the hotel, neither wanting to send her away, but neither really wanting her there. She nodded her understand and headed to the parking lot.

"She's about four hours down the interstate. Try to keep up." Bobby said, getting into his car and unlocking the door for Marion. He pulled out and headed toward the interstate. "Hey, you okay?"

"There's just a lot happening, right now, and... I've got this... bad feeling."

"Girl, this isn't anything bigger or badder than anything else we've done. And... Dean's back. It's good, it's a good thing."

"It is good. But... pulling a soul out... that's a huge thing. Not easily done. I made it out because I was still alive. Dad made it out because they didn't twist him, you know... I made it out because Dad made it out... So... who's this psychic? Anyone I know?"

"You've talked on the phone with her, 'bout 5 years ago. Pamela."

"Ah, Pammy. The sexually aggressive, amazing super psychic. Awesome. She's gonna have fun with my brothers."

************************************

The sun was just coming up when they made it to Pamela's house. The woman who opened the door was beautiful, brunette with brilliant blue eyes. Her arm muscles bulged as she hugged Bobby and picked him up. "Bobby!" She stepped back and examined the siblings, focusing more on the brothers. "So, these are... them?"

Bobby nodded. "Sam, Dean, Marion. This is Pamela Barnes, best damn psychic in the state."

Marion smiled. "We've talked. It's been a long while."

"Longer for you." Pamela said.

"Hey." Dean said, with a flirty smile.

"Hi." Sam said, uncomfortably.

"Mmm-mmm-mmh. Dean and Marion Winchester. Out of the fire and back in the frying pan, huh? Twin rarities."

"If you say so." Dean replied.

"Come on in." Pamela said, patting Bobby on the back as she ushered the in and shut the door.

"So, you hear anything?" Bobby asked.

"Well, I Ouija'd my way through a dozen spirits. No one seems to know who broke your boy out, or why."

"So, what's next?" Marion asked.

"A seance, I think. See if we can see who did the deed."

"You're not gonna... summon the damn thing here." Bobby questioned.

"No. I just wanna get a sneak peek at it. Like a crystal ball, without the crystal." She said, walking into her parlor.

"I'm game." The twins said, before following Pamela.

"Marion, sweetie, will you grab the matches from the cabinet in foyer?" Pamela asked. Marion nodded and walked out.

"Who's Jesse?" Dean asked.

Pamela laughed. "Well, it wasn't forever."

"His loss."

"Might be your gain." Pamela responded. There was a sound of Sam and Dean whispering as Marion pulled out a box of long matches, then, "You're invited, too, Grumpy."

Marion laughed as she handed the matches to Pamela. "These boys don't know how to share, Pam. Trust me. One at a time would avoid the bickering." She whispered.

"That could work." Pamela said, with a wink.

They sat at the table, Marion taking the point between Bobby and Sam. Pamela lit the candles in the middle of the table and cleared her throat. "Right. Take each others hands." After they'd followed direction, she continued, "And I need to touch something our mystery monster touched."

Dean jumped. "Whoa! Well, he didn't touch me there."

Everyone gave a slight smile as Pamela pulled her hand back to the table. "My mistake." Dean looked around the table before sighing and pulling his hand from Sam's. He pulled off his over shirt and rolled up the sleeve of his tee. Marion's eyes widened and she could see Sam's do the same as she saw the mark. A burned handprint. "Okay." Pamela said, as the group completed the circle of hands again and she put her hand on the handprint.

"I invoke, conjure and command you, appear unto me before this circle. I invoke, conjure, and command you, appear unto me before this circle. I invoke, conjure, and command you, appear unto me before this circle. I invoke, conjure and command..." Marion's eyes popped open as a tv switched on to play static. "Castiel? No. Sorry, Castiel, I don't scare easy."

"Castiel?" Dean asked.

"Its name. It's whispering to me, warning me to turn back." Pamela said as the table began to shake. "I conjure and command you, show me your face. I conjure and command you, show me your face. I conjure and command you, show me your face. I conjure and command you, show me your face."

"Maybe we should stop." Bobby suggested.

"I almost got it." Pamela said, shrugging off the concern. "I command you, show me your face! Show me your face now!" The candles flared up like they'd been hit with hairspray and Pamela screamed, loudly. Her eyelids flew open, and burned brighter than the candles as a white-hot fire burned her eyes out. As she fell out of her chair onto the floor, Marion wrenched her hand from Sam's, running around the table to help Bobby.

Marion looked away as the psychic looked around, sightless, her eyes completely burned away. "I can't see! I can't see! Oh, god!"

**********************************

Marion was smoking outside the diner. Sam had gone in as he'd finished his call with Bobby. Pam would live, but she wasn't going to see again. If she hadn't had the second sight, it might be a more tragic thing. She finished her last drag and dropped the filter to the ground. She looked around, then pulled out a small silver flask, sneaking a long gulp before taking a deep breath and heading inside. The door was locked. Marion looked through the bay window in front and saw demons, several of them. As she was considering destroying the window to break in, Dean threw a right hook at the demon sitting at the table with them. She didn't retaliate. Marion let out a scoff of a chuckle as he reared back and hit her again. Her brothers stood and started walk out, no movement from the demons to stop them.

She matched pace with them as they walked across the street. "What the hell was that?"

"That was close, that's what that was."

"We're not just gonna leave them in there, are we, Dean?" Sam asked.

"Well, yeah, there's three of them, probably more and we've only got one knife between the three of us."

"I've been killing a lot more demons than that lately." Sam said, his hair blowing in the wind.

"Not anymore. The smarter brother's back in town, and, uh... you can't ditch the smart sister." Dean added, as an afterthought.

"Thanks for the mention, jackass."

"Dean, we've got to take 'em. They are dangerous."

"They're scared. Okay? Scared of whatever had the juice to yank me out. We're dealing with a bad mofo here. One job at a time."

******************************

Marion wasn't big on the whole, 'Mirrors on the ceiling' vibe of the Astoria hotel, but she was used to that sort of thing. As soon as she was sure Dean and Sam were out, she grabbed her cigarettes and her flask and walked out to the back alley of the hotel. She jumped up on the top of the cleanest looking dumpster and sat cross legged. She drank a few gulps of whiskey from her flask, then lit a cigarette. She pulled out her phone and considered, not at all for the first time, calling Crowley. If anyone knew who had pulled Dean out, it would be Crowley. He had his hands in everything going on in Hell.

But Crowley... He hadn't spoken to her since Hell, and he'd lied to her about Azazel her whole life. He couldn't be trusted. She backed out of her contacts and tapped her fingernails against the plastic on the back of the phone. As the whiskey found itself a place in her bloodstream, she pulled up her pictures. Pictures that she had taken of Polaroids and meticulously saved and transferred from burn phone to burn phone for years. Pictures of her and Dean. Pictures of her and Sam. Pictures of her and Bobby. One picture of her and John, taken on a birthday around 2000, or so. And then, in a password-protected folder, pictures of her and Crowley. He had used his telekinetic ability to take hundreds of pictures of them when she was young. Pictures from the perfect distance with the perfect lighting and she had spent hours in Bobby's attic with them spread out on the floor picking the ones she liked best to shoot with the camera of her first flip phone. She missed that. She missed Fergus.

The sound of the Impala's engine turning over pulled her from her thoughts. She knew that sound anywhere. She jumped down from the dumpster and watched as Sam drove out of the parking lot. She took another drink from her flask and started up to the room. As she walked up the stairs, a weird sensation hit her head. She sat down on the stairs as Bobby's car pulled into the parking lot.

* _Dean... can you understand?*_ Cut into her brain as Bobby rushed up the stairs. Breaking glass could be heard above her, so she made herself stand and run to the room with Bobby. Dean was on the floor, covered in glass and mirror shards. Bobby picked him up, but Marion could only look around the room. _*Dean... we need to talk.*_

"Can you hear..." She asked, turning to Dean and Bobby, but they were already out the door and halfway down the stairs.


	9. Rising Sun

Marion handed Dean a towel from the back seat of Bobby's car. He used it to wipe the blood from his face as Bobby drove.

"How you doin', kid?"

"Aside from the church bells ringing in my head, peachy." Dean said, pulling out his cell phone. "What are you doing?" He asked into the phone.

Marion and Bobby could hear Sam's voice on the other side, but couldn't make out the words. "In my car?" There was a beat before Dean cleared his throat. "Well, uh, Bobby's back. We're gonna grab a beer." Dean put a finger up to silence the protests that he could see rising up in Bobby and Marion's faces. "Done. Catch you later." Dean said, closing the phone.

"Why the hell didn't you tell him?" Bobby grumbled.

"Because he'd just try to stop us."

"From what?" Marion asked.

"Summoning this thing."

"Are you stupid?" Marion asked as Bobby turned to look at Dean in shock.

"You can't be serious!"

"As a heart attack. It's high noon, baby."

"Well, we don't know what it is. It could be a demon, it could be anything." Bobby reasoned.

"That's why we've got to be ready for anything." Dean said, pulling out Ruby's knife. "We've got the big-time magic knife, you've got an arsenal in the trunk... I'm sure Marion is bringing more to the party than just her pretty face."

"This is a bad idea." Bobby said, seriously.

"Yeah, I couldn't agree more, but what other choice do we have?" Dean asked.

"Anything else! That thing... what it did in that hotel room, what it..."

"You could choose life." Bobby said.

"Bobby, whatever this is, whatever it wants, it's after me. That much we know, right? I've got no place to hide. I can either get caught with my pants down again, or we can make our stand."

"Dean, we could use Sam on this."

"Nah, he's better off where he is. Besides... we haven't had enough Bobby, Dean and Pony adventures lately."

Marion scoffed. "You better not be pulling out the nickname because you think we're about to die. You know we're probably about to die, right?"

"Wouldn't be the first time."

***************************************

Bobby handed her a can of black spray paint and a book with several symbols almost as soon as they walked into the empty barn. "All of these, that wall."

She started on the symbols and sighed, loudly. "I _really_ hope this thing, Castiel, really just wants to talk, you know?"

Dean pulled everything out of Bobby's trunk and set it up on the table. "That's a hell of an art project you've got going there."

Bobby finished his last symbol on the floor and walked over to meet Dean at the table. "Traps and talismans from every faith on the globe. How you doin'?"

"Stakes, iron, silver, salt, knife. I mean, we're pretty much set to catch and kill anything I've ever heard of."

"This is still a bad idea."

"Yeah, Bobby, I heard you the first ten times. What do you say we ring the dinner bell?"

Bobby nodded and walked over to the table with the spell components on it. He looked at the twins before reluctantly pulling a pinch of powder from a small bowl and sprinkling it into the larger bowl, causing smoke. He spoke several words of Latin and the bowl gave a small explosive noise. And nothing followed.

It took about 15 minutes, but eventually, they dropped their guards, pulling out of their fighting stances and hopping up onto the tables. Marion chose to stand by the back of the barn.

"You sure you did the ritual right?" Dean asked, earning an angry look from the older hunter. "Sorry. Touchy, touchy, huh?"

Wind began to beat against the barn and the roof started to rattle. "You just _had_ to say something, didn't you, D.?" Marion grumbled, holding her shotgun up.

"Wishful thinking, but maybe it's just the wind." Dean said, looking around. As if in answer, the lightbulbs in the fixtures over their heads burst.

The door to the barn burst open and a handsome brunette man wearing a beige trench coat over a business suit walked in, purposefully. Marion froze as Dean and Bobby started to shoot. This being was not a demon. This being was a bright blue light barely contained in a human skin. This was nothing she'd ever seen before. She watched Dean pick up Ruby's knife. "Dean... that's not..." She was barely able to get the words out, her breath was so caught.

"Who are you?" Dean asked.

"I'm the one who gripped you tight and raised you from perdition."

"Yeah. Thanks for that." Dean said, before stabbing the man with the Kurdish knife.

The man looked down at the knife, before grabbing it, pulling it from his chest and dropping it to the floor. Bobby went to brain him with an iron crowbar, but the man grabbed it, turning to face Bobby. He pressed his fingertips to the old man's forehead and Bobby crumpled to the ground. He turned to Dean. "We need to talk, Dean. Alone."

His eyes turned to Marion as Dean dropped to Bobby's side. "You... You're not like..." The man raised his hand and clenched it into a fist. Her throat clenched, cutting off her words. She focused on bringing in what little air she could, dropping her shotgun and leaning against the wall.

"Your friend is alive." The man said, examining one of Bobby's books.

Dean glared at him. "Who are you?"

"Castiel."

"Yeah, I figured that much. I mean, _what_ are you?"

The man finally looked up. "I'm an angel of the Lord."

Dean looked incredulous as he stood. "Get the hell out of here. There's no such thing."

"This is your problem, Dean. You have no faith." Lightning flashed behind Castiel and a shadowy silhouette of giant black wings appeared behind him.

"Some angel you are. You burned out that poor woman's eyes."

"I warned her not to spy on my true form. It can be... Overwhelming to humans, and so can my real voice. But you already knew that."

"You mean, the gas station and the motel? That was you talking?" Dean asked. Castiel nodded. "Buddy, next time, lower the volume."

 

"That was my mistake. Certain people, _special_ people, can perceive my true visage. I thought you would be one of them. I was wrong."

"And what 'visage' are you in now, huh? What, holy tax accountant?"

"This? This is... a vessel." Castiel said, examining the bullet-riddled clothing.

"You're possessing some poor bastard?"

"He's a devout man. He actually prayed for this."

"Look, pal, I'm not buying what you're selling, so who are you, really?"

Castiel frowned deeply. "I told you."

"Right. And why would an angel rescue me from Hell?" Dean asked.

"Good things _do_ happen, Dean." Castiel said, taking a step forward.

"Not in my experience."

"What's the matter?" Castiel asked. A look of recognition crossed the angel's face. "You don't think you deserve to be saved."

"Why'd you do it?"

"Because _God_ commanded it. Because we have work for you."

"You have work for me? Tell me, then, why didn't you pull my sister out?"

Castiel glared in Marion's direction. "She whored herself to the demon scum. She signed a contract saying they could take her."

"I signed over my _soul_ , you prick! I signed that they could torture me for eternity and you pulled _me_ out! Why was I saved and she had to climb her way out?"

"She wasn't worth the effort, Dean. She _isn't_ part of the plan."

"She not- she's my twin! If she's not part of your plan, then I want nothin' to do with it, pal."

"You don't really have much of a choice."  

Marion struggled to speak until her head felt like it was gonna burst, her throat screaming at her. But, eventually her words started flowing again. "Angels, demons, you're all the same." She croaked, to Dean and Castiel's surprise. The angel barely acknowledged his, only lifting a single eyebrow.

"You've got plans and you expect us to just sit down, shut up, take orders. But we're _Winchesters_ and a hand print on his shoulder isn't going to control my brother any more than the burn in my lungs controlled me. So tell us what the plan is, or piss off."

"We'll be in contact." Castiel said, before he disappeared.

"Holy crap. The balls on you. You okay?" Dean asked.

"I am fine. Just... Get Bobby. I need a drink and a cigarette." Marion said, walking out of the barn and pulling out her cigarettes. She coughed into her hand after she lit up her Marlboro Red. She wiped the blood on her black under shirt and took a deep drag.

*******************************

Marion sat in her car, contemplating the events of the day before. Angels. That was big. Big enough to pull out her phone and click on 'Crowley'. "Probably doesn't even have that phone... better not have to get a bowl."

On the fourth ring, the phone clicked. "Marion?"

"I'm gonna set aside my anger at the fact that you haven't contacted me since I've been out of Hell, because I am so ecstatic that you kept this phone active. I was afraid I'd have to kill another cat."

"Lilith found out you were out of Hell, Marion. She immediately came to me. She killed my hounds. All I got left is the runt, Growley, and Juliet. I couldn't call on you or Lilith would've killed me." There was silence for a moment. "Besides, this is the first time you've tried to contact me since you've been back, too."

Marion rolled her eyes. "I wasn't sure I wanted to see you again, Crowley. You lied to me about Azazel. Anyway, I don't have time for this shit with you, right now."

"You okay?"

"I'm fine." She said, automatically, before shaking her head. "You know what, I'm not fine. I was called a whore today, by an angel, because of my connection with you. I need to see you. We need to talk."

"Where are you?" He asked, concern evident in his tone.

"My car, outside Bobby's place."

Crowley was in the passenger seat of her sedan before she could hang up the phone. His eyes dragged down her seated frame. It reminded her of when he'd examine her when she'd get all dressed up to impress a mark. For a second, she forgot her problems and gave in to the emotions. She leaned forward and wrapped her arms around the demon's shoulders, enjoying the feel of muscle underneath the fine tailored suit. She pulled back and took a deep breath to gather herself.

Crowley smiled as she pulled away from the hug. "How've you been, Pony?"

"Don't 'Pony' me, Fergus." She said, remembering her anger. "Being your 'Pony' got me sent to Hell. I need to know now, Crowley. I need to know the plan."

He rolled his eyes. "This again? I told you. You know the plan, we both die."

"I am okay with that." She said, seriously. "I got called a whore by an _angel_ today. I know there is a Heaven up there, now, and I am perfectly happy to greet it."

"You ungrateful... I don't know what happens to demons when they die, but it sure as shit won't be pleasant. I got you out of Hell, out of your contract and this is how you repay me?! _I_ have plans, Pony, and dying at Lilith's hand isn't a part of them."

Marion reached up and gripped the fabric on the ceiling of her car. "I figured you might say something like that." She ripped it down, revealing a Devil's Trap. Crowley glared as she pushed out the driver's side door and shut it, leaning in the window. "The angels have plans, too, Crowley. The angels have plans, Lilith has plans, _you_ have plans. I want to know them, Fergus, because everyone seems to be setting my brothers up and no one is being very forthright."

"You bitch!" Crowley shouted, moving across the seat to the edge of the Trap. "I can't believe you would... I spent _years_ on you! I saved you, I marked you and this is what I get?"

"I wish that mattered right now, but I'm a Winchester and the end always justifies the means when it comes to my family. Plans, Crowley. Now." It hurt her to see the betrayal in his eyes, but she had to know.

"Fine. Let me out and I'll tell you all about the plan."

"I'm not stupid."

"I can't tell you Lilith's plan, I won't put us in that kind of danger, but my plan... that's simple. Lilith is going to die, and when she does, I take over. I'm her second in command. If she dies, and the angels play their part, I become King of Hell."

"And what  _is_ the angels' part?" She asked.

"That's not important. What's important is this." He pointed at her chest. "You're still marked. Still have sulfur in your lungs.  _My_ sulfur. Do you remember that I took you to my home? I set you aside so we could keep you safe, out of everything. I tried to give you a bloody home, you idiot, for the first time in your life and you couldn't set aside your Winchester bullshit long enough to get happy! You could have been my queen! I _wanted_ you to be my queen. I had a contract that would have compelled you into it if you refused and I gave that up so that you wouldn't rot in Hell. What have your brothers _ever_ given up for you? Nothing. Your own twin would sell you into servitude if it would save Sammy from a bloody hangnail. Me and Singer are the only family you've got. And you put me in a Devil's Trap."   

Marion blinked back tears as she reached through the window to wipe off some of the red chalk she'd made the trap with. "I know you must think my priorities are out of whack, but... they're my blood. You're just... the sulfur in my lungs."

He pushed her against the side of the car, his hand resting just above her cleavage. "Don't you know your anatomy? What's in your lungs infuses into your blood."

Marion looked at him, her breath catching at the sight of pain and betrayal evident in his hazel orbs. She swallowed nervously at the thought of his sacrifices she'd dismissed over the length of their relationship. The thought of him wanting her. "I am always going to be the sulfur in your lungs. Always. Been there for you for your whole life." He moved his hand from her chest to her cheek, caressing her cheekbone with his thumb. "I can't give you what you want here, Marion. I can't let you get yourself killed for your brothers. You already gave up so much for them. I won't let you give them our future." He tipped her chin up and pressed his lips to hers. When she opened her eyes, that she hadn't even realized she'd closed, Crowley was gone.


	10. The Day You Stop Lookin' Back

Marion walked in as Sam drove off in the Impala. "Where's he going?"

"He's gettin' pie. You missed the religious debate. Which side are you on? You think Castiel was telling the truth? You think he's an angel?" Dean asked, sitting behind a giant stack of books.

"Dean, he wasn't a demon. He wasn't anything I've ever seen. He was... divine... for a dick." She said, grabbing a book off the top of the pile and flipping it open.

"So, where were you?" Bobby asked.

Marion swallowed, then cleared her throat. She decided not to keep it from them. "I was... trying to get information."

"From?" Dean pressed.

"The one guy in Hell that I know knows everything."

"You called your little demon pal?" Dean asked, standing, a look between anger and disappointment pulling his features downward.

Marion looked at him, trying to convey boredom. "My 'little demon pal' wholeheartedly believes that we encountered an angel last night, Dean, and so do I. So, if we want to find out what the plan is, D., we might want to get reading."

"You just glossin' over the fact that you're still in contact with this thing?"

"It's the first time I've called him since I've been out. I didn't even think he was gonna answer the phone. But he did. And we talked. That's all. He didn't give me any assignments and I didn't brand anybody for hounds to find. Can we move on?"

"So, you went ahead and called a demon and he told you, what? He thinks Castiel really is an angel?"

"Yes. He told me that he's known that angels are real for a while now, and that it's totally the start of the end if they are back on Earth. I'm gonna open this beer and this book and I'm gonna figure some shit out. This is where I start ignoring you, bro."

Dean groaned and pulled out his cell phone. "Dude, Sam, we need more beer and some chips. Okay, and-and don't forget my pie. Well, not that I can really think of... Okay. Pie." He said, opening up the smallest book from in front of him.

"Did you just say 'pie' instead of 'bye'?" Bobby asked.

"Don't ask, Bobby." Marion said.

Bobby shrugged and walked into the kitchen, pulling up his landline. "She's not answering. Still. What do you say we drop the research for a few hours, go check on Olivia Lowry. She's only about 8 hours away."

Marion shut the book and yawned. "That's a wonderful idea, Bobby. Feels like we've been researching forever."

*********************************

She rode out in Bobby's passenger seat. As they approached the city line of Olivia's hometown, Marion's phone went off with a text. She clicked on her messages and **Things are about to get bloody. Grab the rock salt and stay safe, Pony.** shined up at her. Her heart pounded at the implication. "Bobby." She whispered.

"What is it?"

"It's... Fergus just texted me." She said, holding up the phone.

Bobby stole several looks at the phone between looking at the road. "What's that supposed to... he calls you 'Pony'? Thought that was just John's name for you."

Marion clicked off the phone and put it in her pocket. "Dad stopped calling me that about the time I started dying my hair." She didn't elaborate. With Bobby, she knew she'd never have to. "Fergus knows things, Bobby. He knows a lot. You need to prepare yourself mentally for whatever it is we're about to walk into." Bobby nodded.

As they pulled in front of her house, Marion got out, opened the trunk and grabbed a sawed-off shotgun and loaded it with salt rounds. The Impala pulled in next to them and her brothers raised questioning eyebrows. "Salt rounds. Let's go." She ordered, not answering their unasked question.

Bobby was the first to enter the house, so he was the first to see the body. Covered in blood, her chest was ripped open. Bobby turned and walked out of the house. Sam walked forward, pointing his guy at a bag of salt and a line on the floor. "Salt line."

Dean looked at his twin as Sam knelt down next to the body, before walking into the room Olivia died in. He walked to the closet and picked up an EMF meter. "Olivia was rocking the EMF meter."

"Spirit activity." Sam responded, with a nod.

"Yeah. On steroids. I've never seen a ghost do this to a person." Dean responded, before focusing on Marion. "How'd you know?" It was accusatory.

"I didn't _know_. It coulda been... could've been demons. Fergus texted me, said 'Grab the rock salt, it's about to get bloody'."

"How does he know? Did he do this?" Dean asked, stepping in front of her in an attempt to intimidate her with his height.

Marion scoffed. "Back off, D. Fergus didn't do this."

"Then, how does he know?" Sam asked, softly.

"Fergus knows a lot. He's... he's in charge of a lot of demons. They tell him things. He knows reapers and _they_ tell him things. He has eyes all over the place. He... just... knows." She shook as she pointed a finger at the dead hunter. "But he did not _do_ this. EMF, salt line. This was a ghost, not a demon. So, back off."

"I have a problem with this, Marion. You say you haven't called him until this morning. He didn't try to warn you against anything since you've been back. He hasn't offered you any assistance, and now he's texting you to warn you about a spirit attack? Why?"

"I told you months ago, Dean. In his weird demon way, he cares about me. He might even love me if he were able to feel that emotion. He wants me safe. Whatever spirit this is, he knows it's bad and felt I should be prepared."

"Or, maybe, you called him this morning and you said something that gave him hope that he's still got you on the line. Did you end the call with 'I love you' or somethin'?" Dean asked.

Marion scoffed and shook her head, taking a step back from her twin. "You think so highly of me, Dean. I mean, I had to have done something wrong, right? He couldn't possibly just want to keep me safe. Just like he couldn't have helped me get out of Hell, right? Couldn't have let me burn my contract. You..."

She was interrupted by Bobby walking in, his cell phone in hand. "Bobby, you all right?" Dean asked.

"I called some hunters nearby."

"Good. We can use their help." Dean said.

"Except they ain't answering their phones either." Bobby finished.

"Something's up, huh?" Sam said.

"You think?" Bobby responded, before solemnly turning and walking out of the house. Marion shot an angry look at Dean, before following Bobby out.

Marion grabbed Bobby's arm and turned him to her. "You're gonna send my brothers to go check out some hunters. I'm gonna... head somewhere else."

"Somewhere else?" Bobby asked, with a raised eyebrow.

She sighed. "Fergus knows something. I'm gonna... try to get him to open up. I can't do that with Sam and Dean around."

"I don't like the idea of you..."

"Bobby, you summoned an angel for Dean last night. It was a bad idea and it could have killed us all, but we had to know. Bobby, we have to know. Fergus isn't a danger to me, no matter what you and Dean think. I can't call him if my brothers are around. Please, send my brothers away and let them think I went with you." She whispered.

Bobby sighed and nodded. "Okay. You be safe, girl."

"Always." She whispered, hugging the older hunter quickly before jogging toward the main road.

******************************

"I almost didn't come, Pony. After what you pulled last time."

Marion slid a scotch to the right on the bar and Crowley sat on the empty stool. "It's why I made it so public. Help you trust me again."

Crowley picked up the glass and took a sip. "I never stopped trusting you, luv. You did exactly what a Winchester would."

"So, what's going on, Fergus? What killed Olivia Lowry?"

"A couple ghosts. Thought that was obvious."

"It's more than that. That's not how spirits roll and you know it. That's why you texted me, right? Because this is bigger than it seems."

"Of course, it is. These ghosts... they're more than just angry. They're furious. Furious at hunters."

"How do you know?"

"Because it's my job to know. Come on, Pony. I can't tell you much. You know this."

Marion sighed. "I wish you could just be honest with me, Crowley."

"Me, too. I wish it was that easy."

"You wanted me to be your queen, your wife, but you won't be honest with me?"

"I was honest with you on that. Isn't that the important part?"

Marion turned to him, her eyes glistening. "You know, I loved you. I missed you. You lied to me, though. Why didn't you just tell me about Azazel?"

"Lilith told me not to. I know better than to go against her when she can track it back to me." Crowley said. He took a gulp of the scotch. "Marion... I'm a demon and feelings are..." He said the word 'feelings' like it made him physically ill. "... not something I'm good at. But lying to you, it never felt right. You are the only person I've ever wanted. Even when I was human, when I was Fergus Macleod... I hated my wife. Never wanted her. Just married her because I wanted her father to teach me tailoring. You... I have wanted since you were 15. I have..."

Crowley looked away, focusing on a mirror behind the bar. "I decided I wanted you as my queen when you were 20. Lilith set Alpin after you. She just wanted to see what you'd do. She wasn't mad at either of us, she was just bored, so she sent the biggest, nastiest hound I had after you. You took two bites to your left leg and a bite to your shoulder, but you still managed to get him down, put a boot on his neck. Then, you looked at Lilith and asked her if she had an assignment for you, or if you were allowed to go clean your wounds. You were in pain, but still graceful, powerful, beautiful. In that moment, and every moment after, I wanted to tell you. But you don't fuck with power, Pony. Lilith is power. Azazel was power. I _will_ be in power. You just have to wait with me, luv. Please."

Marion swallowed at the 'please'. The word was a beg. She'd never heard him beg. She nodded. "If I don't die in whatever's going down today."

Crowley stood, leaning down to place a kiss on her lips. She closed her eyes and leaned into the kiss. Crowley ran a hand down her arm. "Don't die by a ghost, Marion. It'd be embarrassing for all of us." Crowley disappeared as Marion chuckled.

**************************************

Her phone when off as she was getting on the road in the car she stole. "Yeah, Dean?"

"Are you with Bobby? Tell me his phone is dead or something."

Marion clenched her teeth. "No. I'm not. He's not answering?"

"I thought you were with him!"

"That's because I knew I couldn't call Fergus with you on my ass. Look, I'll be there in a couple hours."

"Marion, we are gonna finish this conversation this time."

"No, we're not! Because we are both driving and we aren't gonna be any help to Bobby if we end up roadkill. You can talk to me about my life choices later." She said before hanging up on him and putting her foot down.

***************************

By the time she made it to Singer Salvage, her brothers were in the study with Bobby, all of them looking a little worse for the wear. Dean glared at her, but Bobby wrapped her in a tight hug. "You find out anything?"

"Nothing we couldn't have inferred ourselves. Ghosts. Ghosts that are pissed at hunters. He said Lilith would never allow him to reveal more than that."

"Great. You're calling a demon for information, and that demon just happens to take orders from Lilith."

"Everyone in Hell takes orders from Lilith, Dean. She runs the place."

"Okay, so, ghosts. These are all people we know?" Sam asked.

"Not just know. People we couldn't save." Dean said, loading a shotgun with salt rounds.

"I'm good, then." Marion said, pulling away from Bobby.

"What? Are you saying you've never let someone die? Never handed 'em off to a demon to be torn apart by hounds?" Dean growled.

"Nope. The souls I marked while under contract were also under contract. They're in Hell."  
     
"What about the Silverstein kids in Phoenix back in '02?" Dean asked.  
     
"That was you. I was with Dad ganking the mom while you fucked around and let the baby kill the kids."  
      
"Napa. That shifter."  
     
"No. Dude survived. He had some major damage but he lived."  
     
"Hate to burst your bubble, girl, but if you have a ghost coming, it's Christian Williams."  
     
"Oh. Yeah. I forgot."  
     
"Who is Christian Williams?" Sam asked.  
     
"He was this college kid I met on the first hunt Bobby took me on. There was a hex bag under his bed. I missed it. He went up in flames. Survived the initial attack but he died of complications 2 days later."  
     
"So, you don't have a perfect average."  
      
"Yeah. Go ahead and gloat at my one civilian casualty from when I was 12 years old. How many ghosts do you think you've got?"  
      
"All right, that's enough. We gotta get back to the matter at hand." Bobby ordered.  
    
Marion nodded. She wasn't looking forward to this. This was the worst nightmare of most hunters. The ones they failed coming back to judge them. Except they weren't just being judged, they would be executed. It was enough to pull her far away from her thoughts of Crowley.

"Hey, I saw something on Meg. Did she have a tattoo when she was alive?" Dean asked.

"I don't think so." Sam responded.

"It was like a-a mark on her hand. Almost like a brand."

"I saw a mark, too, on Henriksen."

"What did it look like?" Bobby asked.

"Uh, paper?" Sam asked, stepping forward. "Thanks." Bobby offered a pad of paper and Sam took it, grabbing a pencil off the desk and sketching out the mark. He held up the drawing for Dean to look at.

"That's it."

"I may have seen this before." Bobby said, taking the pad. The lights flickered as he grabbed books off of his bookshelf. "We gotta move. Follow me."  
  
"Okay. Where are we going?" Sam asked.

"Some place safe, you idjit."

Bobby picked up several books and led them down the basement stairs to a large iron door. Marion, Dean and Sam looked at each other and then at Bobby, completely curious. The door creaked open and Marion didn't waste a second getting inside. She leaned against the desk and looked around at the weapons and Devil's Traps. Bobby shut the door behind him and locked it down tight. 

Sam ran his hand along one of the walls. "Bobby, is this..."

"Solid iron. Completely coated in salt. 100% ghost-proof." Bobby answered.

Sam seemed amused and impressed. "You built a panic room?"

"I had a weekend off." Bobby said with a shrug.

"Bobby." Dean said, grabbing a high power rifle from the weapon rack.

"What?"

"You're awesome." He said, before chuckling. His eyes fell on a poster on the wall. "Oh."

"There's salt and pellets over there. Get makin' ammo." Bobby instructed, sitting at the desk.

The boys nodded and took off their jackets, before sitting down to make the bullets. Marion sat at the desk, pulling one of the books to her side.

Dean kept looking around the room as he worked, like he was trying to get the courage to ask a question. "See, this is why I can't get behind God."

"What are you talking about?" Sam asked.

"If He doesn't exist, fine. Bad crap happens to good people. That's how it is. There's no rhyme or reason, just random, horrible, evil. I get it, okay. I can roll with that. But if He is out there, what's wrong with Him? Where the hell is He while all these decent people are getting torn to shreds? How does He live with himself? You know, why doesn't He help?"

Sam shot a look at Bobby, who shrugged. "I ain't touchin' this one with a 10-foot pole."

"Yeah." Dean muttered.

"Found it." Bobby said, tapping a pencil against a book.

"What?" Sam asked.

"The symbol you saw, the brand on the ghosts..."

"Yeah."

"Mark of the Witness." Marion stood to read over his shoulder.

"Witness? Witness to what?" Sam asked.

"The unnatural. None of them died what you'd call ordinary deaths. See, these ghosts, they were forced to rise. They woke up in agony. They were like rabid dogs. It ain't their fault. Someone rose them... on purpose."

"Who?" Sam asked.

"Do I look like I know? But whoever it was, used a spell so powerful it left a mark, a brand on their souls." Sam got up and walked over to the desk. "Whoever did this had big plans. It's called 'The Rising of the Witnesses'. It figures into an ancient prophecy."

It was Dean's turn to stand and walk over. "Wait, wait. What, what book is that prophecy from?"

"Well, the widely distributed version's just for tourists, you know. But long story short, Revelations. This is a sign, boys."

"A sign of what?" The brothers asked.

Bobby sat back and sighed. "The apocalypse." Marion sighed and shook her head.

"Apocalypse? As in, apocalypse, apocalypse? The four horsemen, pestilence, $5-a-gallon-gas apocalypse?" Dean asked.

Bobby nodded. "That's the one. The Rise of the Witnesses is a, a mile marker."

"Okay, so, what do we do now?" Sam asked.

"Road trip." Dean said, turning away from the group.

"Grand Canyon, Star Trek Experience." Dean clapped his hands. "Bunny Ranch."

"I'm up for Star Trek." Marion chuckled as Dean sat down.

"First thing's first. How about we survive our friends out there?"

"Great. Any ideas aside from stayin' in this room until Judgement Day?" Dean asked.

Bobby tapped a notebook in front of him on the desk. "It's a spell. To send the Witnesses back to rest. Should work."

"Should." Sam chuckled, sarcastically. "Great."

"If I translate it correctly. I think I got everything we need here at the house." Bobby finished.

"Any chance you got everything we need here in this room?" Dean asked, already knowing the answer.

"So, you thought our luck was gonna start now, all of a sudden? Spell's got to be cast over an open fire."

"Fireplace in the library." Sam caught on.

"Bingo."

"That's just not as appealing as a, uh, ghost-proof panic room, you know?" Dean said.

"Get over it, D. Man up, grab your rock salt and let's go." Marion said, grabbing her shotgun.

"Okay, you know what, Mare..." Dean grabbed her shoulder and turned her to him. "We're gonna talk now. 'Cause we might get torn apart by Witnesses before Bobby finishes the spell to send them back and I ain't dying again without clearing this up."

"Clearing what up? You don't approve of me talking to Fergus. That's clear. I understand that, and I do not give a fuck what you approve of. He's an information asset. He knows things. He works with Lilith."

"And that fact alone should scare you off from ever talkin' to the guy again! You should never have been talking to him in the first place."

"Dean, I'm not gonna talk about this. I trust him."

"You _trust_ him? He's a _demon_!"

Marion turned to her twin and raised an eyebrow. "How many times have you saved my life?" She asked, simply.

Dean scoffed. "I don't know. That's... what kind of question is that?"

"Fergus has saved my life dozens of times, Dean. Starting at 4 years old when he pulled me out of the way of a Chevy that would've pancaked me. I trust him with everything I have. So, deal with it. Grab your damn shotgun so we can get to the study without dying."

"Cover each other. And aim careful. Don't run out of ammo until I'm done, or they'll shred you. Ready?" Bobby asked, his hand on the door. The hunters nodded and took deep breaths as Bobby opened the door.

As they cautiously made their way to the stairs, they noticed a ghost sitting at the top, near the door. Marion had never seen the heavyset man with the curly hair, but she could tell Dean recognized him.

"Hey, Dean. You remember me?"

"Ronald, huh? With the laser eyes? I wish I could say it's good to see you."

"I am dead because of you." He said, standing. "You were supposed to help me."

Bobby's shotgun went off, scattering Ronald into smoke. "If you're gonna shoot, shoot. Don't talk."

The group made their way into the study. Bobby set out the books and got ready for the spell as Sam made a large salt circle and Dean started a fire in the fireplace. Bobby turned to Sam. "Upstairs, linen closet- red hex box. It'll be heavy."

"Got it." Sam said, before rushing out of the room. Bobby's ghosts popped up.

"Bobby." Dean shot at the girls, causing them to disappear, too.

"Kitchen. Cutlery drawer. It's got a false bottom. Hemlock, opium, wormwood."

"Opium?" Dean questioned.

"Go!" Bobby shouted, before turning to Marion. "Girl... I hate to... you've got less of a chance cause you've only got the one..."

"Bobby, where am I going?"

"Out in the salvage yard. I have another hex box in the back of a blue Ford Taurus. It's got a couple important bones in it."

"Got it!" She said, running out of the room and out into the salvage yard.

"And here she is. Marion Winchester." A tall blond man stood between her and the Ford. "Next Queen of Hell if you believe the demon. And you do, don't you? Idiot."

"Chris. I'm so sorry."

"Don't be sorry. I mean, I _was_ in Heaven. It was nice. Your friend Lilith pulled me out. She pulled me out... of.. Heaven! If that isn't enough to throw us on a rampage..."

"Lilith is no friend of mine. Come on, Chris. It... it wasn't my fault that you died. I was 12. Can you really fault me for missing a tiny hex bag under your mattress?" She asked, lifting her shotgun and pointing it at him.

"No. But I can fault you for making out with a demon."

"That didn't happen."

"No. You just kissed in the middle of a bar, while hunters were being torn apart by ghosts."

"How do you even know that?!" She exclaimed.

"Because we watch. We know. We know you are-" He disappeared in a puff of dark grey smoke as a tire iron swept through his body.

"I hate it when the dead won't shut up." Crowley said, stepping forward, dropping the tire iron he'd had wrapped in leather.

Marion scoffed. "Says the guy who died 4 centuries ago and loves the sound of his own voice more than anything."

" _You_ love the sound of my voice, too, pet." He looked around the yard. "Why are you out here?" Crowley asked, as shotgun blasts started in the house.

"Bobby sent me out here to get a hex box. Blue Ford Taurus."

"No, he didn't. He sent you out here to deal with your single Witness all by yourself so that their Witnesses didn't tear you apart. If there _is_ a hex box in that car, it won't contain anything he needs for the spell. Bobby Singer... man after my own heart."

Marion started to run for the house, but Crowley grabbed her arm. "Stop. I have to get in there. They could be dying!"

"You need to do what Bobby asked. Find the hex box."

"You just said-"

"I know what I said, Pony, and so do you! Bobby loves you, he wants you safe. Stay out here."

"You can't think this demon actually gives a damn about you, Marion. He's-" Marion shot the Witness, but he just appeared on the other side of her. "-playing you."

Marion cocked her shotgun and turned to Crowley. "Get out of here. I don't want you getting cracked with a salt round."

"Don't worry about me. I'm here because I'm worried about you."

"That's great. Worry about me safe in your frickin' estate, dude. Just go home and drink some damn Craig! I'll call you if I survive!"

"Manners, pet." He chided before disappearing.  
  
********************

Marion walked into the house and tossed her shotgun on Bobby's desk. "There wasn't a hex box in that car, Bobby."

"My mistake." He said as Dean held a beer out to him.

"How'd you do out there with only one ghost to deal with?" Dean asked, with a smirk.

"Yeah. He's got poor aim. Grabbed for my heart and took a chunk of lung, but... I'll live. You guys look like shit." She said, walking past them and grabbing a beer for herself.

"We'll live." Sam said, sweeping up glass in the library.

"Can't really ask for more, can we?" Marion said, around her beer bottle.

"Can I ask for a sister that doesn't hang with demons?" Dean asked, leaning against the desk.

"Bite me, Dean." She said, sitting down at the kitchen table and pulling her phone out. _**Survived.**_ She sent to her demon.

Her phone went off almost immediately with **Good. I'll have a glass of Craig in your honor.**

"What's Craig?" Dean asked, narrowing his eyes on her phone.

"Scotch. Don't snoop." She said, hitting the power button to black out the screen.

"That's him, isn't it? Drinking scotch to celebrate all the hunters that died today."

She chuckled. "I am going to ignore that, because I'm alive."

"Seriously. I don't like this."

"You don't have to." Marion stood. "I'm gonna go take a shower. Oh, and I call dibs on the cot!"

*******************

Even though it had been more than two centuries since she'd accidentally activated the link between herself and her twin, Marion knew she was in one of Dean's dreams immediately. Her dreams had taken a very different feel since she had started allowing herself to have them again. And she knew she wasn't the only uninvited guest. From her cot in the study, she could hear Dean and the angel, Castiel, in the kitchen.

"Excellent job with the Witnesses." The angel said.

"You were hip to all this?"

"I was, uh, made aware."

"Well, thank a lot for the angelic assistance. You know, I almost got my heart ripped out of my chest."

"But you didn't." The angel said, simply.

"I thought angels were supposed to be guardians. Fluffy wings, halo... you know, Michael Landon. Not dicks."

"Read the Bible. Angels are warriors of God. I'm a soldier."

"Yeah? Then, why didn't you fight?" Dean growled.

"I'm not here to perch on your shoulder. We had larger concerns."

"Concerns? There were people getting torn to shreds down here! And, by the way, while all this is going on, where the hell is your boss, huh, if there is a God?"

"There's a God."

"I'm not convinced. 'Cause if there's a God, what the hell is he waiting for, huh? Genocide? Monsters roaming the Earth? The freaking apocalypse? At what point does he lift a damn finger and help the poor bastards that are stuck down here?"

"The Lord works..."

"If you say 'mysterious ways', so help me, I will kick your ass. So, Bobby was right... about the Witnesses. This is some kind of a... sign of the apocalypse."

"That's why we're here. Big things afoot."

"Do I want to know what kind of things?" Dean asked.

"I sincerely doubt it, but you need to know. The Rising of the Witnesses is on of the 66 seals."

"Okay. I'm guessing that's not a show at SeaWorld."

"Those seals are being broken by Lilith."

"She did the spell. She rose the Witnesses."

"Mm-hmm. And not just here. 20 other hunters are dead."

"Of course. She picked victims that the hunters couldn't save so that they would barrel right after us."

"Lilith has a certain sense of humor."

"Well, we put those spirits back to rest."

"It doesn't matter. The seal was broken."

"Why break the seal anyway?"

"You think of the seals as locks on a door."

"Okay. Last one opens and..."

"Lucifer walks free."

Marion twisted on the cot, her heart racing at the thought of Lucifer.

"Lucifer? But I thought Lucifer was just a story they told at demon Sunday school. There's no such thing."

"Three days ago, you thought there was no such thing as me. Why do you think we're here walking among you now for the first time in 2,000 years?"

"To stop Lucifer." It came out like an epiphany. Like everything finally made sense to Dean.

"That's why we've arrived."

"Well... bang-up job so far. Stellar work with the Witnesses. That's nice."

"We tried. And there are other battles, other seals. Some we'll win, some we'll lose. This one we lost. Our numbers are not unlimited. Six of my brothers died in the field this week. You think the armies of Heaven should just follow you around? There's a bigger picture here. You should show me some respect. I dragged you out of Hell. I can throw you back in."

Marion stood from the cot and raised a hand. Dreams were easy. Manipulating things in the astral was cake. Dean disappeared as Marion walked toward the angel in the kitchen. "You know you can't, right? It's obvious that you all need him. Why else would you have gone through the effort to bring him back?"  
        
"Why- I shouldn't... How are you doing this?" Castiel looked around, confused.  
      
"Doing what? Oh, is your mojo messed up because I entered the dream?" She asked, innocently.  
     
"That isn't a... How?"  
     
"OK. You got me. I'm keeping you here." She said, stepping up to the angel. "Dean isn't even in the dream anymore. He's in that nice between place where you can't wake up, even if you want to. We're gonna keep him there for a while."  
     
He stared at her for a moment. She smiled. "You are so talkative and threatening when you're in control but when a human takes the reigns, you're speechless. 'How' is pretty simple, Castiel. Exactly how I broke your hold on my voice box the other night. I'm 250 years old. I know that is a drop in the ocean compared to your life, but all that time alone gave me the opportunity to learn control. To focus my will." She reached out and grabbed a mug off the dream counter. "It wasn't strong in Hell, they ward against that sort of thing and they kept me so weak... but since I've been out, I've dedicated myself to becoming the sorceress I always should have been. No gods, no spell components. Just my will be done. And I am not going to let you go back until you tell me what the plan is. I get Lilith's plan. Azazel said something about Sam having something to do with bringing Lucifer back. I get that. But what about you? Is Dean just on tap for shutting her down or is it something bigger?"  
     
"I don't know."  
     
"I am not letting you leave here until you tell me, angel."  
     
"The archangels only give me information on a need to know basis. I know Dean is vital in stopping Lilith. I know you and Sam are abominations. That's what I know."  
      
Marion sighed deeply and took a drink of dream coffee. "Damn. I was hoping... It's just... a demon is the only one being honest about his plans and that just seems wrong."  
     
"Honest? You think the demon is being honest? Perhaps I can do you a bit of good while I'm stuck here." Castiel said, before snapping his fingers. The dream changed around them, putting them in a dark office. "Do you recognize this place?"  
     
"This is... Fergus' office... in his mansion."

"This was the night he brought you to live with him. The night Azazel took you to Hell. Watch."

Marion watched as Crowley walked into the office. Azazel popped up beside him, yellow eyes flashing. "You've got one of my Winchesters."

"No. I've got mine. Wanna read her contract?" Crowley replied.

"I claimed the Winchesters before those brats were even born. The only reason you have that contract is because you were able to convince Lilith that she could help you get your numbers up. If it were up to me, she'd be dead." Marion swallowed as Crowley sighed and poured a glass of Craig. "She's a wild card, Crowley. She could make us, or break us and I find the boys much easier to manipulate. Don't think for a minute that you really have her under control. Contract or not, she's a hunter."

"She's not just a hunter, Azazel, she's a Winchester. Instill loyalty and they will follow you to the ends. I've got her just as long as her family keeps pushing her away. Wild card, tamed."

The scene froze as the words hit Marion's heart. A tear rolled down her cheek as she leaned against the wall. Castiel stepped in front of her. "Do you understand?"

"You know, I'm not a bad person." She said, quietly.  
      
"You are misguided, Marion. The demon used that against you. Used the fact that you had little connection with your family, that the only one who treated you well was Robert Singer. He's hoping to use whatever makes you the 'wildcard' in his own plans."  
     
She nodded. "I understand. Thank you for not smiting me. I'll try to get Dean to be a bit more cooperative."  
     
"That would be helpful."   
     
"Of course. Thanks to you, again." She said, her voice monotone as she pulled out of the dream. Her brothers were already awake. She sat up and immediately went to the kitchen for coffee.

"Hey. Were you listening, Mare?" Dean asked, getting up and walking into the kitchen with her.

"I was listening last night. That dream thing we used to do." She whispered, trying to figure out a way to get the monotone out of her voice.

"You were... you were there?" Dean whispered back.

"Yeah. I didn't want to call attention. I heard what Castiel said. Lucifer. Lilith is trying to raise Lucifer. And Fergus... he works for her. He knows and he... you were right about him, Dean. I... I'm gonna need a couple hours. I... I'm gonna go deal with him."

"Let me help." Dean offered.

Marion shook her head. "It's a simple exorcism. I've got this."

"You want the knife?"

"No. I'm... an exorcism will be enough to deal with him for now. But I need the time. Okay?"

Dean nodded, before wrapping his arms around her. "I'm sorry I was right."

"Me, too." Marion whispered.

*****************************

The ritual to call Crowley was easy after doing it so many times as a teen. Candles on a sigil, bowl of several different herbs, a cut across her palm to let blood his the herbs and a match as she recited, "Et ad congregandum, eos coram me." 

Crowley appeared in front of her, next to a tree. "You summoned? You haven't summoned me like this in years."

"I had an interesting night." She said, wrapping her hand in a handkerchief. "Trapped an angel in a dream. That was nice. I'm getting pretty good at traps."  
    
Crowley looked around. "You bloody did it again, didn't you? Come on!"  
      
"Yeah, but this time, I'm not sorry." She pointed up where a Devil's Trap was painted on the bottom of a tree stand above his head.  
        
"What's this about, Pony?"  
    
"I had an interesting conversation with that angel while I had him stuck. He showed me a conversation you had with Azazel."  
       
Crowley kept a straight face as he adjusted his tie. "I had many conversations with him before your brothers dispatched him. A refresher, maybe?"  
        
Marion nodded. "What does 'wildcard' mean, Crowley?"  
     
"Don't know what you mean?"  
     
She sighed, loudly, before quoting. "But she's not just a hunter."  
     
"Whassat?"  
     
"She's a Winchester." She continued, pacing angrily just out of his reach. "'Prove em loyal and they'll follow you to the ends.' And I did. I followed you to Hell and back. But it was all so that you could have the wildcard on your side. What does that mean? What is it that I can make or break?"  
    
"I can't tell you! I've been keepin' it from you for your own good." Crowley exclaimed. "Just let me explain, Pony. Out of context, that whole loyalty thing seems bad, but I was just trying to talk big in front of Azazel. Please! Don't be mad about that."  
      
"Crowley... that ship has sailed. I want to walk, now. But not until I know what 'wildcard' means."  
    
"Look, you need to understand-"  
      
"No, you understand. I will walk away, Fergus. You are in the middle of the woods in Minnesota. You can't smoke out, you can't walk out. You won't be stumbled upon by unsuspectings until hunting season. You will be here for months, losing all those souls and deals. Away from Lilith and her plans. I will leave you here."  
         
"But you still can't kill me. That is how I know you don't really hate me like you're thinking. Just hear me out." He said, hopefully.  
     
"No. You've constantly lied to me, Crowley. You've bought my loyalty by saving my life, but it's all been fake. If I leave you here, know that I will kill you the next time I see you."  
     
"I didn't lie about wanting you as my queen. I didn't lie about wanting to keep you safe and out of Lilith's 'Bring Dad Home' plan. I just lied about Azazel. Pony, don't-"   
     
Marion shook her head as she turned and started to walk away. "'Wildcard' means you're special." Crowley shouted. She stopped and turned, but didn't walk back. He looked disappointed in himself for breaking as he continued. "Whatever it is about your brothers that makes them so bloody important, it's you, too. They have their part in the plan... well, you are their understudy. When the shit hits the fan and everything comes out, you can replace either of them."  
    
"So... I can break the plan by taking over and making different decisions than my brother would." She said, softly.  
         
"See, this is why I didn't say anything! Because when it comes time, you're going to follow in the ancient Winchester tradition of sacrifice. You won't be able to stop yourself from martyring your-bloody-self! But you can only replace one of 'em. I was tryin' to save you from this decision. Look, just let me prove that I wasn't lying about..."  
     
"My whole life. I'm not falling for it anymore, Crowley. If I see you again, you're just another demon." She promised, heading toward the path out of the woods.  
     
"Please, Marion. You are the only thing keeping me connected to what little humanity I have left. I don't know who I'll be if you aren't beside me." He begged.  
     
She turned her head to look at him. "Well, you were a pretty shitty human, too, so maybe this is for the best." She walked away as he shouted her name.


	11. Redemption

Marion woke up in a field of corn, the sun beating down on her face. When she sat up, she saw Castiel 20 feet away, watching her.

"What happened? Where are we?" Marion's head was pounding, she hadn't gotten very much sleep.

"I was ordered to bring Dean to this point in the past. You two have a strong link, so you were brought along."

"Must've been while I was sleeping." She looked around, shielding her eyes from the sun. "So, where is he?"

"Elsewhere. I had to bring you, but this is not meant to be a joint effort."

She stood and began walking through the corn. Castiel followed. She grabbed an ear of corn and kept walking. "Stalks are shorter, ears are smaller and thinner. 50s or 60s?" She asked, loudly.

"70s." Castiel responded, succinctly.

"So, are you just going to babysit me this whole time or are you going to help Dean accomplish whatever it is that you have him doing?"

"Dean doesn't need my help. I have been ordered to make sure you stay away until he's done. It won't take long."

"Of course." She turned around, looking up at him. "You don't like me, do you?"

"You sold yourself to a demon. You befriended him. You fantasized about him. You obviously aren't faithful to Heaven."

"Neither is Dean." She said, blushing that the angel knew her secret fantasies. "But I am very faithful to my family. And of course, you won't understand this, because you're Heaven's robot, but when a virgin shares her first kiss with a man, or a demon as it was, who knows exactly how attractive he is..."

Castiel stared at her. She shook her head and kept walking. "He used my attraction against me, I'm sure, but... It doesn't matter, anymore. I've gotten rid of him. If I see him again, I'll kill him. So, you don't have to worry about my loyalty. My loyalty is with Bobby and Dean and Sam."

She stopped and turned to her trench-coated follower. "Why is it such a big deal to you guys? Why is it such a sin that I found a single demon, just one, that was nice to me, and as a stupid 16 year old, I made a stupid decision? One that I have _more_ than paid for. Dean sold his soul, literally. Why is he so important and I'm an abomination?"

No answer came from the angel, so she turned and started walking again. Twenty minutes later, at least it felt like twenty minutes, she heard the sound of passing cars. "Well, that sounds like a roadway." Marion said, picking up her pace.

"Does it?" Castiel asked, before the sound disappeared and the corn around her thickened.

She looked around, before smirking. "You're gonna have to up your illusion game, if you wanna get me, Castiel. Road's still there." She said, walking forward. Castiel grabbed her hand and suddenly, the cornfield was replaced with a beach.

"I thought I could keep you near your brother, but your relentless nature has made that impossible. You'll have to deal with the beach."

"Wow. Heaven rewards determination, huh?"

"I can't allow you to find Dean. Not before he's done. Just enjoy the beach."

She flopped onto the sugar white sand and looked out at the orange and purple sunset over the water. "It's just gonna get worse, isn't it? It's just gonna get worse and I'm already so tired."

"If you need rest, perhaps I could-"

"Not that kind of tired." She interrupted. "I'm 270 years old. Humans aren't supposed to live that long in the first place and... most of my life has been torture. Sometimes I wish they'd just killed me, because then if get some rest. Then, it'd be over."

Castiel sat awkwardly next to her. "If I die, would I go to Heaven?" She asked.

"In your case, I believe an exception would be made. You've saved many lives." She nodded. "But not if you killed yourself."

Marion snorted at that. "I'm not gonna off myself, Cas. I'm not that tired. I just wanted to know I'm never going to Hell again. I know what they'd do to me."

"You've paid for your sin. They won't take you again."

Tears began rolling down Marion's face. "That's the nicest thing I've ever heard." She chuckled as she wiped at her eyes.

"Then, why are you crying?"

"Because... I don't know! Ha! Maybe they're happy tears. I don't think I've ever wept from joy... never."

Marion pulled out her cigarettes and placed one between her lips. Castiel reached over and grabbed it. "You've paid for your sin. Stop punishing yourself."

"Punishing myself? I don't get it."

"You didn't start smoking because you liked nicotine. You started because you didn't want to taste the demon's sulfur. You had no cigarettes in Hell. You didn't need them. You can stop now. The sulfur is no longer a sign of your poor decisions, it's a sign of your redemption and may even be an asset in the fight against Lucifer's army."

"Have I gotten to redemption, now? Not very long ago we were in a cornfield talking about how you don't like me much. How I'm an abomination, even though I can..."

Castiel looked over at her. He lifted the cigarette and crushed it between his fingers. "You don't need this." He reached over and placed a hand on her collarbone. "I've just cleaned your system of nicotine and taken the tar from your lungs."

Marion breathed deeply, then exhaled. "The sulfur's... not as bad as I remember."

Castiel smiled, slightly. "I'm glad."

Marion smiled and looked down, before reaching out and untying her boots, pulling them off followed by her socks. She stood and pulled get shirt over her head. Castiel looked confused as she folded her pants and ran towards the water in her bra and panties.

"What are you doing?" He called.

"Well, it ain't quite skinny dipping, but it sure is liberating!" She called back as she was hit by a wave.

Castiel appeared next to her, sitting on top of the water and floating over the waves like an inner tube. "You don't seem to be tired, any longer."

She smiled. "I suppose the idea of redemption has cured my melancholia." She dunked herself completely under the water and came back up, kicking her feet to tread water.

"So, what is it you have Dean doing?"

"He is attempting to stop the demon Azazel from targeting your brother."

"But that would... change everything. We'd never be hunters."

"No."

"But we have to be hunters. So, this is an exercise in futility."

"There are things Dean needs to learn from this time. Things he must understand."

"What? Castiel, please. This is my family."

"Azazel targeted your mother first. He was already putting together parents who would bear children suitable for his purpose when he stumbled upon the Campbells... mostly due to Dean's interference."

Marion almost went under as she forgot kick her legs. "What? You mean..."

"Dean was always here. He couldn't change anything if he tried... And he is trying. Just like he always has."

"Whoa, time travel. Hurts my head."

"I have to leave you, just for a few moments. I will return." Castiel said.

Marion was on the beach, laying on the sand when Castiel reappeared. "So, was that for Dean?"

Castiel nodded. "He is trying to save your mother. She is going to be making a deal to save your father's life."

"A deal with Azazel? For... putting demon blood in Sam?" Marion asked, sitting up to look at him. Castiel nodded, again. "Damn. And this... has all happened before."

She sighed and shook her head. "How much longer on this?"

"Tomorrow night."

She lied back, using her clothing as a pillow. "So, 24 hours to kill in 1973. What in the world could I even... What beach is this?"

"It's the Gulf Coast of Florida. In 30 years, this will be full of buildings. I believe this area is called Panama City Beach."

"Wow. This doesn't say MTV Spring Break, at all. But it's beautiful. Dean wondering where you are?" She asked.

"He was wondering where you are, as well as Sam."

"He's in Kansas and I get the beach. Where's Sam?"

Castiel looked away. "Sam is with Ruby. He's-"

Marion punched the sand. "I told that bitch to back off. I gave her a chance... she won't get another one." Castiel smirked, slightly, at her reaction. "Sorry."

"Perhaps we should be backing you. You seem ready to do what needs to be done."

"Please. I'm just the understudy." She said, humbly.

"What does that mean?"

"Oh. Uh... Fergus told me what 'wild card' means. I can substitute in for either of my brothers in... whatever it is that they are supposed to be doing."

"Hmmm." He said, before reaching out and touching her forehead. She looked down to see her clothes were back on and she was completely clean and dry.

"If you don't have to, don't tell Heaven about me. Azazel knew about my status and wanted me dead. I think he might've been behind the wheel of that truck that almost killed me."

"No. That was just a drunk driver. You weren't referred to as the 'wild card' by any demons until after the demon Crowley marked your lungs with sulfur."

Marion nodded. "So, I take it, there aren't any motels around here and that none of them would take my damn credit card, anyway. Guess I'm roughing it, tonight. You just gonna sit around while I sleep, or what?"

"I will leave you so that I can watch Dean."

"And then be back as soon as I wake up, right?"

"Right."

She leaned back and laid her head on her hands. "Well, good night, then, Castiel."

***************************************

When she woke up, Marion started walking. Castiel was nowhere to be seen, but she was okay with that. She stole a car from a construction site that seemed like it hadn't been worked on in weeks and started driving. She drove down US 98 until she came to a diner. She swiped the wallet of a man in the parking lot and walked in, sitting in a corner booth.

"How you doin', sweetheart? Can I get you started with somethin' to drink?" The waitress asked.

Marion smiled up at her. "Coffee, please." She said as the waitress put a menu down in front of her. She ordered a burger and fries, keeping a tally in her head of $2.53. "If only things were this cheap back home." She mumbled to herself.

"Oh? Where ya from, pet?" The man in the booth in front of her asked. The voice wasn't exactly the same, it _was_ a different vessel, but the tone, the inflection, it told her who it was.

"Gainesville." She whispered, unsure what to do.

"Hmm. The city is expensive. Don't you ever wish you were rich, so you could afford the good life? Have your own money, instead of picking the pockets of those better off?"

Marion closed her eyes. He was trying to sell her. She'd never been on this side. "No, I'm fine with things as they are."

"You're content? No one's content." He said, moving from his booth to sit across from her at hers. His vessel was a tall, skinny blond man with light blue eyes, but she could see Crowley underneath that visage. She could see his red eyes and his true face.  "If you could have anything in the world, what would it be?"

Marion took a drink of her coffee and decided to show her cards. "If I could have anything in the world, it would be a peaceful lunch. You know, alone, without a demon at my table."

His eyes flicked red and his eyebrows drew together. "You're marked. A witch?"

Marion shook her head. "I was a pagan for several years, but never a witch."

"Then, who would be crazy enough to mark you? These days that's usually reserved for high priestesses in the Grand Coven." Marion resisted the urge to breathe his own sulfur in his face, instead choosing to stare at him over her coffee mug. "You're not going to tell me?"

"We're nowhere near a crossroads. What are you doing here?"

He smiled. "I am on a bit of a vacation."

"A vacation? You're trying to sell me on your vacation?"

"Hard to pass up a good customer, and such a good-looking one." She felt uncomfortable under his lecherous look, but mostly because that look was still able to hit her buttons. Even with him in a different vessel, even when he doesn't know her, even when she knows the kind of manipulation he'd start on her in just 10 years time. "What's your name, pet?"

She sighed and smiled at the waitress as she dropped off her burger. "Britney. Spears." She answered as she pulled the top bun off of the burger and grabbed the ketchup bottle. "And I'm not your pet."

He smirked and tilted his head as he examined her. "Do you wanna be?"

"Oh, dude. Bite me. I'm not even your type. Your type is more... ancient, in a young body." She responded.

Crowley's eyes narrowed. "How do you know-"

"About Lilith? I know a lot about a lot. So, Crowley..." She stood, pulling a $5 bill out of the stolen wallet and putting it on the table. He seemed surprised at the use of his name. "... I'm gonna walk out, and you're not gonna follow. Enjoy your vacation." She said, grabbing her burger and walking out with it. 

Castiel was standing in the parking lot when she walked outside. "You weren't at the beach."

"I got hungry. Fergus is in there. Take me somewhere else." She demanded. Castiel put his hand on her shoulder and then, they appeared in the cornfield. She laughed. "Thank you for getting me out of Florida. I was... like 3 lines away from exorcising that piece of... but that's the vessel he was in when he pulled me out of the way of the truck and I can't change anything, right?"

"Right. We are on the outskirts of Lawrence again. Can I trust you to stay out of the way of your brother?"

Marion smiled. "You know you can't. But I'm pretty sure that by the time I walk to town and find my brother, it'll be time to take us home."

Castiel nodded, then disappeared. Marion started walking out of the cornfield, chomping on her burger.

******************************

Marion woke up on the couch in their room at the Willow Tree Motel. Castiel was standing by Dean's bed. Dean sat up, casting his leather jacket to the side. "I couldn't stop any of it. She still made the deal. She still died in the nursery, didn't she?"

"Don't be too hard on yourself." Castiel said, solemnly. "You couldn't have stopped it."

Dean stood and let out a confused, "What?"

"Destiny can't be changed, Dean." Castiel turned to him as Marion stood from the couch. "All roads lead to the same destination."

"Then, why'd you send me back?"

"For the truth. Now, you know everything we do."

"What the hell are you talking about?" Dean asked.

Dean and Marion's eyes followed Castiel's to Sam's empty bed. Empty and not ruffled at all. "Where's Sam?" Marion asked. 

"We know what Azazel did to your brother. What we don't know is why. What his endgame is. He went to great lengths to cover that up."

It was Dean's turn to ask. "Where's Sam?"

"425 Waterman." Castiel answered. Marion pulled her plaid button-up on as Dean grabbed his leather. "Your brother is headed down a dangerous road, Dean, and we're not sure where it leads. So stop it. Or we will." She glared at the angel as she followed her brother out of the room.


	12. Sweet Dreams

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Crowleylover made me realize that there wasn't very much Crowley in the plan for my next few chapters. So, I came up with this.

Marion and Dean walked quietly up to the window of an old dilapidated building. An ugly orange car was in the lot out front. They watched through the window as Sam spoke to a demon tired to a chair. She couldn't see a devil's trap, but she knew there had to be one, because the demon was not breaking out. The words muffled by the window, she could only tell that the demon was saying something harsh because of how Sam's face contorted.

Then Sam lifted a hand and the demon began to jerk on the chair, his smoke being pulled, forcefully out of the vessel. Marion had never seen anything like that. Sam looked pleased with himself and Ruby returned a smile, but the twins on the other side of the glass just looked on in horror. "What the hell?" The words were just barely audible to Marion as Dean headed for the door.

She followed behind as Dean wrenched open the door. Sam froze as his siblings walked in. "So... anything you wanna tell me, Sam?"

"Dean, hold on, okay? Just let me-" Sam started

"You gonna say, 'let me explain'? You're gonna explain this? How about this? Why don't you start with who she is, and what the hell is she doing here?" Dean growled, stepping forward. Marion stayed by the door as Sam turned his head to look at Ruby, who smiled.

"It's good to see you again, Dean."

"Ruby? Is that Ruby?" Dean asked.

Sam was silent so Marion piped up as Ruby's smile faded. "It's Ruby."

Dean scoffed and gave a little chuckle, before he rushed Ruby, shoving her into the wall behind her. He pulled out the Kurdish knife and tried to stab her, stopping only because Sam grabbed his arm. "Don't!" Sam yelled, twisting the knife out of his brother's hand. Dean pushed him into the opposite wall and tried to keep the upper hand with Ruby, who twisted them to put Dean against the wall. Her right hand held fast at his throat, choking him. "Ruby! Stop it!"

Ruby continued for a few moments before releasing her chokehold on Dean. Dean stood to his full height, looking from Sam to Ruby. "Well, aren't you an obedient little bitch?" Dean asked, before looking across the room to his twin. "And you're damn useless."

Marion took a step forward from the door. "I know better than to get in between you and Sam. And if you're going against Ruby with Sammy in the room, you're going against Sam. Useless, maybe, but at least my throat doesn't hurt for no reason." She quipped.

"Ruby." Sam whispered. "Ruby, he's hurt. Go." He gestured to the victim from before.

Ruby glared at Dean one more time before walking over to the man and putting his arm around her shoulder. Marion started to back out of the building as Dean growled, "Where the hell do you think you're going?"

"The ER... unless you want to go another round first."

Marion was at Ruby's bright orange car when the demon walked out with her broken human companion. "I'd hand him over, Ruby. It's your best chance."

"For what?"

"A getaway. See, you hand him over, I'm gonna focus on getting him help. You don't, I'm gonna focus on you. Because I told you that you were done with my brother." She stood, her fist shaking.

"And I told you that Sam _wasn't_ done."

"That doesn't matter. You leave, he has no choice but to be done. You ignored me. And this is the time where you should run, Ruby. Because I don't know how old you are, but I know you're used to hunters that don't think much. I've got 250 years on every Hunter you've ever met. I'm a thinking girl and I'm thinking that I'm gonna chase you down and I'm going to send you back to Hell with a bright target on you that says, 'this one helps hunters'."

"Look, Sam and I, we're trying to do some good here. We're saving people."

"Unfortunately for you, Ruby, I've recently come to the determination that there is no such thing as a good demon, so give me that meatsuit and run. Because as soon as I get him out of Dodge, I'm coming for you."

"So, what, you had a fight with your boyfriend and now, you're gonna take it out on me?" Ruby asked, dropping the victim lightly next to her.

"That's exactly what's happening here." She said, sarcastically. "I gave you a shot. I was nice. This is your warning, Ruby. I am going to kill you. Now versus later is your choice."

"You're making a mistake." Ruby said.

"I've made a lot of those. This is not one." She said, bending down to grab the man, gently as Ruby hopped into her car and peeled out of the parking lot.

************************************

Marion was driving down the highway in her second stolen sedan of the day when her phone went off. "Yeah, Dean?" She answered.

"Where are you? I expected you to be here with Sam but you aren't."

"You're with Sam? Can he hear me?"

"No."

"Good. I'm hunting Ruby down."

"How?"

"Same way Dad tracked Azazel. Also, she's really fond of that orange monstrosity she calls a car."

"Monstrosity? Don't think that really counts as-"

"I like Mustangs, Dean. But, it's a '70 and it's orange."

"Right."

"When Sam asks, I'm helping Bobby on a case. He'll back me up on it."

"All right, well, if you finish with Bobby early, we're gonna be in Carthage, Missouri. Travis shot us a line, he's got something for us."

"Okay. Good luck."

"You, too."

********************

Marion woke up to the sound of her motel room door closing. "Hey, Pony. Up and at 'em."

"Dad?" She asked, sitting up.

"Yeah. We aren't gonna wait around much longer. Your brothers already have the car packed, your mother and Jessica are almost done setting up the truck. We're gonna leave you here, you're never gonna see the Grand Canyon."

"Oh. I know what this is." She whispered, running her hand down her face. "Hunting a demon and I get hit by a djinn."

"What? Hunting? You don't hunt." John said, tossing her duffel bag at her. "Unless the other surgeons got you into it."

"Yeah. The other surgeons got me into hunting. Grand Canyon." She smiled, taking a deep breath of air into lungs without a lining of sulfur. "What harm could it do? Grand Canyon." She said, stuffing her clothes in the bag and following John out to the parking lot of the motel. She stopped to look in the mirror by the door as a flash of blonde caught her eye. She marveled at the look of her with her natural hair. Blond hair against green eyes and pale skin. Surgeon's skin.

"Guess I never needed to start dying it." She whispered, before walking out the door.

"Hello, Sleeping Beauty. Thought we were going to have to leave you behind." A familiar voice said.

"Hey, Fergus, grab me a soda before you get in the car." Dean ordered, walking around to the driver's door.

"What? I... this is my deepest desire? Apple pie life with..." She whispered.

"Hey, MacLeod. Get in the car, girl. We're already running behind." Jessica yelled from the passenger seat of a large truck with KC lights and a camper trailer attached to the back.

"MacLeod." She whispered, slowly easing into the back seat of the car. Marion looked down at her left hand, noticing a plain white gold ring next to a large princess cut diamond on a platinum band. _I don't even like him, anymore. My deepest desire is this?_

"Are you okay, Pony?" Crowley asked, taking her hand.

"Why... why do you call me that?" She asked.

"Pony? I-I always call you, 'Pony'. Have for years."

"But, why? I mean, I know why, in the real world, but..."

Crowley smiled, softly. "Your brothers call you 'Mare'. A mare is a horse. You are my pony. And I do enjoy the ride." He finished in a whisper. He winked at her and smiled.

Marion leaned her head on his shoulder and looked down at her hand again. _Marion MacLeod._

 _************_

It was a dream. She knew that before, but it would have been made glaringly obvious by how quickly they made it to the Grand Canyon. Staring out at the huge hole in the world, Marion couldn't help but feel small. "Fergus. How'd we meet?"

"I came into the ER with a pair of scissors in my neck. Remember? My shop got robbed. Why are you asking, pet?"

"I'm trying to see if I could live here." She whispered.

"I know you know it's fake, Pony. The djinn was told you were too smart to trick. But before you decide it's time to break free, I want you to look around." Crowley pointed to a pair of picnic tables near the scenic overlook, where the Winchesters were sitting. "Your parents are both alive. Your brothers are happy. You are married to the only man you've ever loved, and I really am a _man_. This is undoubtedly fake, but... Why does that matter? You said it yourself, you've lived more than a human should and none of it has been happy. Don't you deserve a bit of happiness?"

"I'll die out there. In the real world, I'm dying."

"You're 2 centuries past your expiration date, pet. And a couple days out there is a lifetime in here. A lifetime of happy parents, happy brothers, happy Pony. Isn't that a nice trade?"

Marion looked away from the picnic tables. "It _is_ a nice trade." She whispered. "So, what? Just fake it? Pretend I don't know it's a dream?"

"Exactly. Grow old with me, Marion, like you'd never have a chance to do in the real world."

"In the real world, I'd stick the demon killer knife between your eyes."

"And here, we can be together for life."

Marion turned to him and slipped her arms around his neck. "Fergus Roderick MacLeod, I accept."

"Dr. Marion Louise MacLeod, you've made me a very happy man."

"Just glad you're not a demon." She whispered, tilting her head to press her lips to his. His tongue pushed into her mouth, his hand going to the back of her head.

He broke away and smiled. "What do you say we go fog up the windows in your brother's Chevy?" He suggested.

"I think the RV is the better way to go, Fergus." She whispered, taking his hand and leading him toward the truck.

"Oh, really, guys?! You still on that honeymoon crap?!" Dean called as Crowley pulled the door of the camper closed behind him.

They kissed, Marion walking backward toward the full size bed at the back of the camper as Crowley's hands went under her shirt to fondle her breasts. When they made it to the bed, Marion broke away, pulling her tee over her head as Crowley unbuttoned his shirt. As she reached behind her to unhook her bra, he pulled his shoes off. "It's absurd how I've been waiting for this for my whole damn life." She whispered as he dropped his pants to the floor. He smiled and pushed her to the bed, pulling her jeans down her legs.

He crawled up her body and kissed her, sweet and soft. "I love you, Marion. For the rest of our lives."

"I love you, Fergus." She whispered, pulling at his shirt, hands running lovingly over his chest. He pushed her hands away, pulling his shirt down his arms. He positioned his head between her legs and smiled up at her as she closed her eyes, her bottom lip securely between her teeth.

It was better than she could've dreamed. Better than any experience she'd ever had in the real world. She would stay just so that she could have that kind of orgasm every day.

*************************

Crowley was sleeping as Marion slowly stood from the bed and grabbed his button-up shirt from the floor. She wrapped it around herself and buttoned it, pulling on her panties and tip-toeing to the door. It was dark outside, and she could see the outlines of her family in a half dozen sleeping bags on the ground outside. The ground hurt her feet as she walked toward the scenic overlook, but she kept walking. It wouldn't matter, anyway. She made it to the edge of the canyon and looked down at the black abyss. "Marion, what are you doing?" She closed her eyes at her father's voice and refused to turn to him. "I thought you decided to stay... here with us."

"Mare. Don't you want to be happy?" Dean asked.

"I can't... It's... I can't just give up."

"They said you'd be difficult." Sam's voice added.

She turned her head to look over her shoulder. "They who? Who set this up?"

"Pony, come on. We talked about this. Just let go. Be happy here." Crowley walked up to her.

"I could never be happy here. I could never forget that it's all fake. As much as I want... Crowley would never be so loving. My dad hasn't been nice to me since I was 12 years old. My brothers barely acknowledge me. My life has been torture since I was 4 years old, but... I wouldn't trade it for this world." She said, before bending her knees and vaulting herself over the edge of the canyon.

Her body twitched violently as she woke from her dream state. Her head pounded as she raised her hand to pull at her bindings. When she finally freed herself, she pulled her phone from her pocket. "Hey, Mare, where ya been?" Dean answered.

"I hope you're done with whatever Travis dropped on you, because I'm turning on the GPS in my phone and I need you to track it. Come get me."

"We're in the middle of nowhere. I'm barely getting service, let alone internet. It'll have to wait til we can access... _Can_ it wait? What happened?" Dean asked.

"Dean, what's..." Marion could imagine her twin putting his hand up to silence their brother.

"A djinn. The night I left to track down Ruby. How long ago was that?"

"This is day three on that, Marion. Where's the last place you remember being?"

Marion closed her eyes and let out a shaky sigh. "Um... tracked that stupid Mustang to Nevada. I was heading to... uh, Car-Carson City. Stopped at a Motel 6 and... That's where the thing had to have grabbed me."

"Okay, so, you are probably still on the far side of Nevada, likely in a warehouse or somethin' out in the desert. Sammy and I are about 30 miles from the nearest free Wi-Fi, you hang tight, all right?"

"I don't know if I can. I haven't had any water in days. I gotta try to find some so that my organs don't shut down before you get here. I mean, are you still in Missouri?"

"Actually, we're in Kansas, hence the whole lot of nothing. I swear we will get to you. Try to find water, but don't go crazy trying. Don't deplete what you got left."

Marion didn't bother with goodbye, hanging up and switching on the GPS. She twisted slowly off of the table she'd woken up on and began to scan the room. 'Warehouse' had been a good guess on Dean's part, but she couldn't pinpoint what this warehouse might have been used for before the djinn turned it into her tomb. She was shaking as she shuffled across the wood floor. _Djinn had me for 3 days, felt like nothing._

Her eyes fell on a jug behind a stack of pallets. She fell to her knees in front of it, shaking hands pulling the gallon jug out and up to eye level. There was, maybe, 4 Oz of ZephyrHills water in the bottom of the jug. "Fuck." She whispered, twisting the cap off and carefully bringing the jug to her lips. She held the jug to her lips long after the last drop had graced them, then she twisted the cap back on and held the jug upside down. _Just a few more drops._

She sat down and leaned against the wall, struggling to stay awake. She pulled out her phone and tapped out a text to Sam. _**Found a few ouncs water bout to pass ot pleasehurry**_

**************************

She fell in and out of consciousness, several times. She got a message saying they'd found her on GPS, that she was on the desert side of Carson City and they would be there in less than 24, _**just hang on.**_

When her brothers burst into the warehouse, she was just waking herself up again. "Marion!" They both yelled.

"Here." She couldn't get her voice louder than a whisper.

Her twin was the first one in front of her, pushing a squeeze bottle of lemon-lime Gatorade to her lips. It was warm, but she didn't care. "Hey, slowly." Dean said, soothingly.

She coughed as Dean pulled the bottle away. Sam was next to him a second later. He opened a protein bar and placed it into her left hand. She shook as she put the bar to her lips. "Thank you." She said around the food.

"Where's the djinn?" Dean asked.

She shook her head. "It hasn't... been here. It didn't even feed... off me. It just... put me under and.... left me to die."

"What? That... doesn't make sense." Sam said, wrapping her arm around his neck and picking her up off the ground.

"Something in my dream. You... you said that 'they said I'd be difficult' but wouldn't answer who 'they' were. I think... maybe... this djinn was just... a hit man."

"You think there's a price on your head? Why would there be a hit out on you?" Dean asked, following behind Sam.

She shook her head, lightly. "I've pissed off some demons, so have you. I've pissed off some hunters. I've... got some vodun priestesses in N'awlins who... don't like me much. But I can't... see why anyone would delegate to a djinn to get it done."

"We'll figure it out."

***********************

"So... what was your dream?" Dean asked, staring at his twin from across the diner table.

She swallowed a bite of burger and washed it down with coffee. "Mom and Dad were both alive. So was Jessica. Everyone was happy. You owned a chain of body shops, Sam was a junior partner at a law firm in LA. I was a surgeon. There was no hunting, Dad never hit me. I was blond. Real blond, like Mom." She said, with a smile.

"How'd you break out?" Dean asked.

"Threw myself into the Grand Canyon."

"Grand Canyon?" Sam asked.

"Winchester family road trip. Like, with a camper and everything. Sammy... you, Jess, Mom and Dad were in the truck, Dad's truck, and me and... you were in the Impala, driving across the country to the Grand Canyon."

"What, no wife for me? No husband for you?"

"No. No time for me to date with the whole surgeon thing. And you... you never let it go past dating."

"All right. Well, good job getting yourself out. They made things nicer for you than they did for me." Dean said.

"Well, they knew that it would take a lot to keep me happy enough to kill."

"But no man? No sex?" Dean asked.

Marion looked down. "Sex is not such a big deal to me, D. Definitely not a deal-breaker to be a celibate surgeon."

"So, what was your deal-breaker? What forced you to jump into the Grand Canyon?" Sam asked, taking a bite of salad.

She sighed and took a drink of coffee. "I knew it was fake. I mean, I knew from the moment Dad walked in calling me 'Pony' like nothing bad had ever happened. And the dream, it knew that I knew. It told me to 'look around, everyone's happy, don't you want to be happy?' And I did. I wanted to be happy. But it... couldn't even feel real when I _knew_ it was fake. So, I jumped and woke up on the edge of death."

Sam nodded, standing from the booth and walking away.

"Marion. You don't have to lie, you know?" Dean said, leaning forward. "Your little demon pal was there, huh? Fergus?"

She looked down. "He was human. He was... sweet. That was my deal-breaker. There was no way I could forget that the _real_ Fergus was a manipulative demonic piece of shit. So... I jumped."

Dean nodded. "We'll figure it out." He repeated.


	13. Hot blooded

Marion followed Sam and Dean into the hospital and down into the morgue. They'd taken a few days, stayed in Carson City, to get her back on her feet. She'd spent the time trying, and failing, to get some sleep, but then Sam had pulled up a story of several perfectly healthy men dying of heart attacks in Colorado and it was time to leave again. She was actually relieved to put on her navy skirt suit and sensible pumps. Some normalcy was always a good place to start. 

They walked in and greeted the coroner, each of them pulling out their badges and giving tight smiles. They asked to see the body of Frank O'Brien, the first man who dropped. The doctor opened the bag. "Agent Tyler, Agent Perry, SSA Harry, meet Frank O'Brien."

Dean had shot her a glare when she'd introduced herself as 'Supervisory Special Agent Harry' but he wouldn't say anything. 

"He died of a heart attack, right?" Sam asked.

"Three days ago."

"But O'Brien was 44 years old and, according to this, a marathon runner." Marion said, looking at the file Sam was holding.

"Everybody drops dead sooner or later. It's why I got job security." 

"Yeah, but Frank kicked it here. Now, just yesterday, two perfectly healthy men bit it in Maumee. All heart attacks. You don't think that's strange?" Dean asked. 

"That sounds like Maumee's problem to me. Why's the FBI give a damn, anyway?"

"We just want to see the results of Frank's autopsy." Marion said, with a smile.

"What autopsy?"

"The one you're gonna do." Dean answered. 

The coroner rolled his eyes before grabbing a scalpel and starting the post. "First dead body?" The question was aimed at Marion.

"Far from it. You don't think she got to be Supervisory Special Agent without seeing a few stiffs?" Dean defended.

"Oh, good. Because these suckers can get pretty ripe. Hey, hand me those rib cutters, would you?" 

Dean leaned over and grabbed the cutters while Sam took a deep breath to steel himself against the disgusting sight. Marion managed to look bored as the doctor snapped through the ribs and shoved his hands into the man's chest. Dean focused on Frank's hands. "Is that from a wedding ring?" Dean asked, pointing to the tan line on the left fourth finger. "I didn't think Frank was married."

"Ain't my department."

"Any idea how he got these?" Sam asked, picking up the arm and examining the scratches on the knuckles and forearm.

"You know what? When you drop dead, you actually tend to drop. Body probably got scraped up when it hit the ground. Huh." 

"What?" Sam and Marion asked.

"I can't find any blockages in any of the major arteries." Dean fought the urge to vomit as the doctor twisted and pulled out the heart. "Heart looks pretty damn healthy. Hold that a second, would you?" The doctor said, handing the heart to Dean, who immediately handed it to Marion. 

Sam smirked down at his siblings as the doctor continued his postmortem. A slicing sound hit their ears and then blood hit Sam's face. "Oh, sorry. Spleen juice." 

Marion looked the heart over, then walked over to the counter with it and placed it in a plastic tub. "I think we have enough for now. If you could send us the full report when you've finished, that'd be great, but... it's looking like a match to the guys in Maumee." She pulled her gloves off and threw them away in the bio bin, before grabbing a handful of towels and handing them to Sam.

"Dude, you were like a statue in there." Dean said, as soon as they left the morgue.

"I _was_ a surgeon in another life." She said, with a smile. 

******************

Marion paced in front of her brothers in the Sheriff's office. She was too tired to sit and still look like federal. "Deputy Linus, please. This is a federal investigation. Please, just dial the Sheriff." 

"He said not to disturb him." He said, with a smile.

She walked to the coffee pot and poured herself a third mug of caffeine. Marion paced for a few minutes more, until the Sheriff opened his office door. "Hell's Bells, Linus, have you seen my... who are they?" He asked as Sam and Dean stood behind Marion.

"Federal agents. I, uh..." Linus started.

"And you kept them waiting?"

"You, you said not to disturb."

"Come on back, Agents." They started to walk into the office, but the Sheriff put a hand up to stop them. "Shoes off." 

Marion stepped out of her pumps easily as her brothers toed their shoes off and roughly put them to next to the sheriff's door. She smiled at the awkwardness of her brothers walking around in their dress socks as she resisted the urge to slip across the tile floor in her stockings. The sheriff shut the door behind them and walked around to shake their hands. "Al Britton. Good to meet you."

"You, too." Sam said as Sheriff Britton gestured to the two chairs in front of his desk. Marion chose to stand. "Thank you."

Sheriff Britton grabbed a bottle of hand sanitizer and slathered his hands in the gel. "Okay. So, what can I do for Uncle Sam?" 

"Well, we're looking into the death of Frank O'Brien. We understand some of your men found his body." Marion said, taking to her statue-esque SSA role, again.

"They did. Me and Frank, we were friends. Hell, we were Gamecocks." Dean laughed, causing the Sheriff and Marion to shoot him a stern look. "That's our softball teams name. They're majestic animals. I knew Frank since high school. To be honest, I just this morning got up the strength to go see him. Frank was... he was a good man." 

"Yeah. Big heart." Dean replied.

"Before he died, did you notice Frank acting strange? Maybe scared of something?" Sam asked. 

"Oh, Hell yeah. Real jumpy."

"You know what scared him?" Marion asked, looking at the sheriff's trophy case.

"No. Wouldn't answer his phone. Finally, I sent some of my boys over to check on him, and well, you know the rest." The sheriff began to couch, then grabbed the hand sanitizer again and poured more onto his hands. "So, why the Feds give a crap? You don't really think there's a case here?"

"No, no. It's probably nothing." Dean said. 

"Just a heart attack, most likely, but with the deaths in Maumee, we have to make sure. You understand." Marion said, reaching out to shake the sheriff's hand again before turning to open the door.

"No way that was just a heart attack." Dean said as they walked to the car.

"Definitely no way. Three victims, all with those same red scratches. All went from jittery to terrified to dead within 48 hours." Sam replied.

"Something scared them to death?" Dean suggested.

"All right, so what can do that?" Sam asked.

"What can't? Ghosts, vampires, chupacabra? It could be a hundred things." Marion said, jogging to keep up.

"Yeah. So, we make a list and start crossing things off." Sam said.

"All right, who's the last person to see Frank O'Brien alive?" Dean asked.

"His neighbor, Mark Hutchins." Marion answered as Dean slowed then stopped.

"Hang on, hang on."

"What?" Marion and Sam asked.

"I don't like the looks of those teenagers down there." Dean said, calling attention to a group of teenagers on bikes down near where they'd parked the Impala. "Let's walk this way." Dean suggested, before walking across the street, away from the Impala and the teens.

"That's... weird, isn't it?" Marion asked, watching her twin. 

"Definitely weird." Sam agreed.

Marion took a deep breath and walked down the street toward the teens. "Hey, guys. How we doin'?" She asked.

"Five-oh?" The teen with the skateboard asked.

"Fed, actually."

"You're hot for a feeb." The fat one said. 

"I sure am. I am gonna have to ask that you vacate, though. Loitering laws, you know."

"Worse than Sheriff Al." One of them grumbled as they started to disperse. Marion grabbed a can of Red Bull from the hand of the fat kid as he walked away. 

Dean walked over as soon as they were gone, looking grateful. "You didn't have to do that. We could've just waited for them to leave." 

"Kids like that, who knows how long that would've taken?" Marion said, walking up to the back passenger door of the Impala. As soon as she sat down, she popped open the can and downed it.

*****************

Marion sat between Sam and Dean on Mark Hutchins' ugly couch. "Tyler and Perry. Just like Aerosmith. I mean, your boss kinda ruins it. Unless there was an Aerosmith-Blondie collab."

"Yeah. Anyway." Marion started.

"So, the last time you saw Frank O'Brien?" Sam asked as Dean gulped nervously about a large bearded dragon. 

"Monday. He was watching me from his window. I waved at him, but he just closed the curtains."

"Hmm. Did you speak to him recently? Did he seem different? Uh, scared?" Sam asked. 

"Oh, totally. He was freaking out." The man said, petting his snake.

Marion resisted the urge to look at her twin as Sam turned to examine Dean. "Do you know, uh... do you know what scared him?" Dean asked, nervously.

"Well, yeah. Witches." 

"Witches. Like?" Marion asked.

"Well, 'Wizard of Oz' was on TV the other night, right? And he said that green bitch was totally out to get him."

"Anything else scare him?" Sam asked.

" _Everything_ else scared him. Al-Qaeda, ferrets, artificial sweetener. Those PEZ dispensers with their dead little eyes. Lots of stuff." 

"So, tell me. What was Frank like?" Sam ignored Dean and moved on with the questioning.

"I mean, he's dead, you know? I-I don't want to hammer him but... he got better." 

"He got better?" Marion and Sam asked, simultaneously.

"Well, in high school he was... he was a dick."

"A dick?" 

"Like, a bully. I mean, he probably taped half the town's butt cheeks together, mine included."

Dean snickered, then sobered a bit. "So, he pissed a lot of people off. You think anyone would have wanted to get revenge?"

"Well, I don't... Frank had a heart attack, right?"

"Just answer the question, sir." Marion ordered.

"No. I don't think so. Like I said, he got better. After what happened to his wife."

"His wife? So, he _was_ married." Marion shot a look at Dean as his body stiffened next to her.

"She died about 20 years ago. Frank was really broken up about it." Marion followed Dean's eyes to the snake around Mark's neck. "Don't be scared of Donny. He's a sweetheart. It's Marie you gotta look out for. She smells fear." 

Marion smirked as an Albino boa constrictor crawled down the back of the couch. Dean went statue still as it crawled to his lap. She smiled and gently picked up Marie. "I love constrictors. They always wanna hug." She said, pulling it off of Dean and standing with it.

"It's gonna squeeze you to death." Dean whispered. 

"No fear, Dean." She said, handing the snake to its owner.

"You're crazy." 

**********************

Marion walked around the apartment, her EMF reader in her hand. "You know he's losing it." She said.

Sam nodded. "Slowly getting worse all day."

"What do you think..."

"I don't know, Mare. I'm going to call Bobby as soon as we're done here."

"Maybe we should bench him. Maybe we should back off on stressing him, you know?"

"I don't know. I think that might piss him off, you know?"

"So, save his ego, not his life?"

Sam turned to her and took a deep breath. "We don't even know if that would help, at all, Marion. Frank O'Brien wasn't hunting or doing anything stressful. He was just living his life. He died, anyway. We need all hands on deck for this, so we can figure it out before he..."

"Yeah, okay." She interrupted, starting her sweep again.

****************

Dean jumped as Sam and Marion got into the Impala. "Hey. Any luck at the county clerk's office?"

"I'm not sure I'd call it luck. Frank's wife, Jessie, was a manic-depressive. She went off her meds back in '88 and vanished. They found her two weeks later, three towns over. Strung up in her motel room. Suicide." Dean handed a piece of paper about the death to Sam.

"Any chance Frank helped her along to the other side?" Sam asked, handing the paper back to Marion.

"No, Frank was working a swing shift when she disappeared. Airtight alibi." Dean answered, turning over the engine. He pulled out of the apartment building's parking lot and headed for their motel. "How was Frank's pad?"

"Clean." Marion answered. "Went over it top to bottom. No EMF, hex bags or sulfur."

"So, probably no ghosts, no witches, no demons." Sam continued.

"3 down and 97 to go." Dean groaned. 

Sam looked over to the dashboard. "Dude. You're going 20."

"And?"

"That's the speed limit." Sam said.

"What? Safety's a crime now?" Dean asked, as he drove past the suicide turn into their hotel. 

"Dean, that was our hotel." Marion piped up.

"Where are you going?" Sam asked.

"Sam, I'm not gonna make a left-hand turn into oncoming traffic. I'm not suicidal." Sam shot Dean a look as a whirring noise started in the cab. "Did I just say that? That was kind of weird." Dean chuckled.

"Do you hear something?" Sam asked. 

"Check your pocket." Marion said, pulling out her EMF reader, which was lighting up. Sam pulled his out and brought it next to Dean, then pulled it back to him, then to Dean again. The meter went high whenever it was close to him.

"Am I haunted?" Dean asked. "Am I haunted?!"

"It does seem that way, D. Just calm down or you're gonna crash. Get us to the hotel, okay?" 

**************

Dean gave Marion the bed while he took the couch. She could count on one hand the number of times that had happened in their lives, but he mentioned something about blankets and suffocation and he went to lie down on the couch. It was a shame that she couldn't sleep, because it really would've been something to get a full night's rest on a real bed. In the morning, she followed Sam to get donuts and coffee. "Ghost sickness. That's so... ancient. I mean, when was the last documented case of ghost sickness?" She asked.

"Couple hundred years ago." Bobby answered. "But it's definitely what he's got."

"Okay, so... 48 hours starting yesterday morning at the morgue." Sam said.

"I'll dig into my books, see if there's anything we can do."

"Yeah. Okay, Bobby. Keep looking." Sam said, hitting the power button on his phone and putting it in his pocket. He and Marion stopped as the first chords of 'Eye of the Tiger' poured out of the Impala. They scoffed and walked toward the Chevy. Dean lie in the front seat, playing air drums to Survivor. Sam banged on the roof, causing Dean to jump in fear. He sat up and turned off the radio, before getting out of the car.

"Guys. Look at this." He said, breathlessly. He extended his left arm to them, showing off the dark red scratches there.

"We just talked to Bobby." Marion said, taking the box of donuts from Sam's hands and placing it in Dean's.

"And?" Dean smelled the box, then tossed it in the car window. 

Sam scrunched his eyebrows together at Dean's reaction to the food. "Um, well, you're not gonna like it."

"What?"

"It's ghost sickness."

"Ghost sickness?" 

"Yeah." Marion answered.

"God, no."

"Yeah."

"I don't even know what that is."

Marion chuckled as Sam picked up the explanation. "Okay. Some cultures believe that certain spirits can infect the living with a disease, which is why they stopped displaying bodies in houses and started taking them off to funeral homes."

"Okay, get to the good stuff." Dean said, anxiously.

"Symptoms are, you get anxious..." Marion started. 

"Yeah."

"Then scared, then really scared, then your heart gives out. Sound familiar?" She finished.

"Yeah, but Sam and me, we haven't seen a ghost in weeks."

"Well, I doubt you caught it from a ghost. Look, once a spirit infects that first person, ghost sickness can spread like any sickness... through a cough, a handshake, whatever. It's like the flu. Now, Frank O'Brien was the first to die, which means he was probably the first infected. Patient Zero." Sam suggested. 

"Our very own Outbreak monkey."

"Right. So, we found out that Frank was in Maumee over the weekend for a softball tournament. That's where he must have infected the other two victims." Marion said.

"Were they Gamecocks?" Dean tried to joke, but the fear in his voice cut out the humor.

"Cornjerkers." Sam replied. 

"So, ghost infected Frank. He passed it on to the other guys and I got it from his corpse?"

"Right."

"So, now what, I have 48 hours before I go insane and my heart stops?" Dean's voice was desperate.

"More like 24." 

"Super."

"Yeah." Sam said, as Marion nodded with a 'yep'.

"Well, why me? Why not either of you? I mean, you held the heart longer than I did a-and I mean, you got hit with the spleen juice."

"Yeah, um, you see Bobby and I have a theory about that, too. Turns out all three victims shared a certain, uh... personality type. Frank was a bully. The other two victims, one was a vice principal, the other was a bouncer." Sam said.

"Okay." Dean didn't follow.

"Basically, they were dicks." Sam finished.

"So, you're saying I'm a dick?" Dean asked.

"No, no, no. It's not just that." Sam started.

"Quit while you're ahead, Sammy. All three victims used fear as a weapon, and now the disease is returning the favor, D."

"I don't scare people."

"Dean, all we do is scare people." Sam said. "I mean, Marion's the scariest chick I've ever met."

"I try."

"Okay, well, then, you're dicks, too."

"Apparently, we're not." Sam said, amused. 

"Whatever. How do we stop it?" 

"We gank the ghost that started all this. We do that, the disease should clear up." Sam answered.

"We thinking Frank's wife?" 

"Who knows why she offed herself, you know?" Marion said, with a shrug.

"Hey, what are you doing waiting out here, anyway?" Sam asked.

Dean looked over at the hotel. "Our room's on the fourth floor." Sam looked to Marion to see if she understood what Dean was trying to get, but she just shook her head. "It... it's high." Dean clarified.

"I'll see if I can move us down to the first." Sam said, rolling his eyes.

"Thanks."

"Sure." 

Marion followed Sam into the Bluebird Hotel as Dean climbed back into his Baby.


	14. Check It and See

She was supposed to be watching Dean, but Marion lied on the bed and tried to sleep. She was willing herself to sleep and not dream. Dreams didn't do anything but sadden her. She could feel Dean's anxiety from across the room as he started to cough. "D. are you okay?" She asked, not opening her eyes.

"Yeah. I'm fine."

"You don't have to lie, you know?"

"Oh, don't use my words on me."

"'I'm fine' is my line, Dean. So... it's only fair."

"I'm... starting to hallucinate. This book is makin' fun of me. And this fuckin' clock." There was a sound of Dean's chair scraping on the floor and then a crashing sound.

"Just 'cause you broke the clock, doesn't mean time's not moving."

"Yeah, but now, it can't taunt me with it's tick-tick-ticking. You want a beer?" Dean asked. Marion opened her eyes and sat up, nodding. Dean handed her a beer on his way to the couch. She followed him, flopping down next to him. "When's the last time you slept, Mare?"

"I get an hour or two every once in a while."

"That's not good for you."

"You don't sleep much, either, Dean. Not since you've been back."

"I sleep more than you. You haven't slept all week. You'll be hallucinating soon, too."

"Nope. I have myself under control, D. You don't even know the things I can do with my mind."

Dean turned to her. "Like what Sam could do with his?"

Marion rolled her eyes. "No, Dean. I'm talking self-control. Self-discipline. 239 years of surviving in Hell. That's what I'm talking about."

"You're always very specific about that number. Two-thirty-nine."

"I earned the right... 238 years and 236 days. I earned the right to round up."

Dean brought his beer to his mouth. "42 and 87." He whispered.

"Thought you didn't remember?"

"No, you didn't. You knew I don't wanna talk about it so I lied."

"Yeah." She took a sip of beer and leaned her head against her twin's shoulder.

"I mean... other than your number and the obvious starvation... I don't know what happened to you down there, either."

"You wanna have a heart-to-heart about this, D.? I can regale you with my first 120 years before Azazel brought Dad in."

"You saw Dad in Hell?" Dean asked, sitting up and turning to her.

"Yeah. Azazel pulled him in and he, uh... told him all about Fergus. You know, I'd seen rage on that man's face, I'd seen such terrible sadness, but... I never saw disappointment the way I did that day. That look, that's why I didn't call Fergus when I got out. It wasn't because Fergus worked for Lilith. Hell, _I_ used to work for Lilith. No, it was because of the disappointment in Dad's eyes when I told him that I sold myself to a demon to keep him from hitting me, again."

"Wow." Dean said. "Your torture was Dad and potato soup."

"It was not... just Dad and potato soup, Dean. You think Alistair would just-" She shook her head as a look of recognition crossed Dean's face. "You _know_ Alistair wouldn't just leave it at that. He stood over you every day for 40 years. Just like he stood over Dad."

Dean looked down, uncomfortably, before putting his feet up on the coffee table and taking another drink of his beer. The door opened and Sam walked in, carrying a convenience store bag with chips. His eyes fell on the clock on the floor. "Everything all right?"

"Oh, yeah. Just peachy. Find anything?" Dean asked, scratching at his arm.

"Yeah. Jessie O'Brien's body was cremated, so I'm pretty sure she is not our ghost." Sam said, sitting in the chair and putting his feet up on the table, too. He kicked Dean's feet, lightly. "Hey, quit picking at that. How you feeling?"

"Awesome. It's nice to have my head on the chopping block again. I almost forgot what that feels like." Dean said, sarcastically.

"Yeah."

"It's freakin' delightful." Dean said, taking another drink.

"We'll keep looking." Sam said as Dean started to cough. He leaned forward as Marion rubbed his back. "You okay? Hey! Dean."

Dean jumped up from the couch and ran to the sink, coughing and gagging. His siblings ran to his side as he coughed up a wood chip. He reached into the sink and rinsed it off.

"We've been completely ignoring the biggest clue we have. You." Sam said, with a smile.

"I don't wanna be a clue." Dean whined.

"The abrasions, that thing. The disease is trying to tell us something." Marion said, pulling the chip out of Dean's hand.

"Tell us what? Wood chips?"

"Exactly." Sam said, rushing to his laptop.

"Lumber mills?" She asked.

"There is a Cassity & Sons Lumber Mill about 15 miles away. Let's go." Sam said, standing again.

********************************

Marion's head was pounding before Dean even pulled into the woodchip-covered drive outside the mill. Dean's face showed his apprehension as they got out of the car. "I'm not goin' in there." He said. "Why don't Marion and I, we just lie down and get some rest."

"That place is huge. We need backup. You're going in, Dean." Sam said.

"And I told you, I'm fine, Dean." Marion said, walking toward the trunk.

"Yeah. 'Cause you're 250 with some crazy mental kung fu and that's totally gonna help us when you start seeing shit, too." Dean leaned into the car and grabbed a 750ml bottle of whiskey, taking a gulp of it. "Let's do this." He opened the trunk and looked at the mill. "It _is_ a little spooky, isn't it?"

Sam leaned into the trunk, grabbing Dean's Colt and trying to hand it to him. "Oh, I'm not carrying that. It could go off." Dean said, reaching into the trunk to grab a flashlight. "I'll man the flashlight."

Sam gave a tight smile and handed the Colt to Marion. "You do that." They walked through the mill, Sam with his shotgun up, Dean with his flashlight, and Marion holding the Colt up. Sam stopped as the EMF meter started to go off in his pocket.

"EMF's not gonna work with me around, is it?" Dean asked, before letting out a heavy breath.

Marion's head swam as Sam said something to Dean with a snarky tone before leaning down to pick up something on the ground. A gold ring. "'To Frank. Love Jessie.' Frank O'Brien's ring."

"What was Frank doing _here_?" Marion asked. Her voice sounded far away to her.

"No idea."

They continued through the building, Marion bringing up the rear behind Dean. They entered a locker room and Marion broke off from her brothers, sliding along the wall through to another room. She found a small bathroom. "Pony." She heard Dean scream like a girl in the locker room as she turned and aimed at a shimmering hallucination of Crowley. "Day 7. Tryin' for the record, luv?"

"You're not real." She whispered.

"You're right. You left me in the middle of Huntersville State Forest. This is just a hallucination... because you haven't slept since your brothers saved you in Nevada. I have to commend you, Pony. A normal woman would've started hallucinating days ago. But you, just never have been normal, have you?"

"No... go away. I have... I have to save my brother. I can't..." She closed her eyes, tightly, hoping to blink away the vision.

"Oh, come on, Mary. We can't go away. We're you." Azazel's voice caused fear to tingle up the base of her spine.

"No. You... They killed you. You... I can't."

"Pony. You know your brothers are looking for you."

"Stop calling me that." She whispered, opening her eyes. "Only my dad calls me..."

"Pony. Come on, girl. You need to go help your brother. If Dean dies, I'm holding _you_ responsible."

Marion covered her eyes with her free hand and took a deep breath. "I'm a sorceress, I am strong. I can trap an angel of the Lord in a fucking dream and I can get rid of you!" She growled. She took several deep breaths, then cautiously opened her eyes. She let out a sigh of relief as she saw she was alone. "Oh, thank god." She whispered, before backing out of the bathroom and walking through the building to find her brothers.

"Hey, where'd you go?" Sam asked.

"Um... no ghosts in the ladies' room." She said, putting her gun away. "What was he screaming about?"

"There was a cat." Dean said. "In a locker. It was scary."

Sam nodded before walking to a desk and picking up an old ID card. "Luther Garland." He said.

Dean walked to another desk and examined a sketch of a woman. "Hey, this is uh... this is Frank's wife." He said, pulling out the paper from earlier with her picture on it.

"Plot thickens."

"Yeah, but into what?" Dean asked, before tearing the picture off of the desk. The sounds of machinery caused him to twitch and turn around to examine the room. He froze, his flashlight trained behind Sam and Marion. They turned and looked in the corner. Sam took a step toward the large man in the corner.

"Hey!" He barked. Marion watched as Dean turned tail and ran and Sam shot the spirit, which disappeared. They walked out to the car and scoffed at the sight of Dean downing the rest of his bottle of whiskey. "Guess we got the right place." Sam said, presenting the ID to Dean.

"Let's go get our suits on." She said, leaning against the trunk.

"You okay?" Sam asked her, as Dean got in on the passenger side.

She blinked at him. "When this is over, Sammy, once we've yanked Courage off the chopping block, I'm gonna need you to put me in a sleeper hold, knock me out."

"You _still_ haven't slept? How are you not crazier than he is?" Sam's worried face leaned over her head.

Marion looked down, then into the rear windshield, focusing on her twin's scared face. "Sleep deprivation is one of those non-lethal things they did to me in Hell during my first hundred years. There was nothing to distract me down there, no caffeine no hunting to keep me going, though, so a demon stood over me, for days sometimes, burning or cutting me whenever I started to drift. My record _was_ 5 days without a hallucination."

"And you've been going for 7 now? Have you been hallucinating?"

"I'm not hallucinating." She answered.

"But _have_ you been?"

"Sam, I know the difference. I can tell the truth from my... living nightmares."

"I think you should get some sleep once we go back to the hotel. Dean and I can follow up on Luther Garland."

Marion stood tall, staring at him indignantly. "You're benching me?! He's drunk and screaming at cats in lockers and you're benching _me_?"

"I'm not gonna argue that he's getting worse, Marion. He is. But so are you, and his isn't fixable with a few REM cycles, okay? The closer _you_ are to functional, the better our chances of saving Dean, so please. Just stay at the hotel and get a little sleep. We'll come get you after we figure out how Luther Garland ties in."

"Fine. Knock me out when we get back."

**************************

Marion had insisted Sam put her in a choke-hold. Dean whined about how dangerous that was. "Don't you wanna try some tea, first? Not too hot, though. Just nice and warm." but Sam had done it, anyway, then laid her on the bed. "She's not dead, is she?"

She woke four hours later to Dean walking into the room, panting. "D., you okay?" She asked, rubbing her eyes.

"I'm dying. I'm going to die. Do you _think_ I'm okay?"

She sat up, still feeling drained but not feeling compromised any more. "Dean, we're going to fix this. We're still hours away from..."

"My heart exploding?!"

"Where's Sam?" She asked, exasperated.

"I don't know. I-I walked away. I quit. I don't want to hunt anymore. It's stupid. It's _crazy_ to hunt monsters."

"Yeah. You're right. It's nuts. But that's our lives. I'm gonna call Sammy." Marion said as Sam opened the door and walked in.

"I looked everywhere for you, Dean. How the hell did you get here?" Sam asked.

"Ran." Sam sighed, before sitting on the bed next to Marion. "What do we do now? I got less than four hours on the clock. I'm gonna die, guys."

"No. You're not." Sam said. Dean looked over, puzzled. "We're gonna make sure you get out of this. We just got you back."

"Back?" Dean asked.

"From Hell? Dean? Are you-"

"He's starting to hallucinate again." Sam said, as Dean stood and stumbled forcefully backward into the wall.

"No! You get out of my brother, you evil son of a bitch!" Dean shouted, his back against the wall, struggling against invisible forces that seemed to be holding him there.

"No one's possessing me, Dean. This is me. You're hallucinating."

"No, not you, too, Mare." Dean said, tears streaming down his face.

Sam and Marion rushed to their brother, shaking him and yelling 'hey'. Dean looked around as he came out of the hallucination. "Welcome back. We're not demons." Marion said, patting her twin's shoulder as Sam patted his chest.

"I...guys, I..."

"Lay down. I called Bobby. He's on the way. We're going to fix this, Dean." Sam said, grabbing his duffel to change his clothes.

"Hey. I'm feeling about 3000% better than I did earlier. I'm coming with." Marion said, grabbing her duffel.

"How much sleep did you get?"

"A little under four. I got at least 3 cycles. I'm fine."

"All right. Get dressed."

****************************

Marion and Sam were sitting on the hood of the Impala as Bobby pulled up in his Chevelle. "Howdy, kids." He said, walking up.

"Hey, Bobby." Sam said, dropping down off the hood. "Thanks for coming so quick."

"Where's Dean?"

"Home sick. Couldn't trust him out here." Marion answered, wrapping her arms around Bobby.

"So, have his hallucinations started, yet?" Bobby asked, leaving an arm around Marion's shoulders.

"Yeah. A few hours ago."

"Little ones started midway through yesterday. Big ones started about 2 hours ago." Marion clarified.

"How we doin' on time?"

"We saw the coroner about 8 am Monday morning, so, uh... just under two hours. What about you? You find anything?"

Bobby pulled out a book and handed it to Sam. "This, uh, encyclopedia of spirits dates to the Edo period."

"Edo... Japanese?" Marion asked, straining to look at the book in Sam's hand.

Sam flipped through the book. "You can read Japanese?"

"Kimi nanka umareru mae kara, zuttoda yo."

"Guess so, show-off."

Marion's eyes drifted up as she thought the words over in her head. "From before birth, it's more? Oh! Since before we were born!"

"You gotta work on that, girl."

"Oh, come on, Bobby. We haven't had lessons since the Summer after I got back from Hell."

"Anyway, this book lists a kind of ghost that could be our guy. It, uh, infects people with fear. It's called a buru buru."

"How do we kill it?" Marion asked.

"Same as always. Burn the remains."

"Wonderful. Uh... is there a Plan B?" Sam asked.

"Well, the buru buru is born of fear. Hell, it _is_ fear. And the lore says we can kill it with fear."

"So, we have to scare a ghost to death?" Sam asked.

"Pretty much."

"How the hell we gonna do that?"

Marion smirked, stepping away from the car to look at Bobby and Sam. "What do you think the scariest point in Luther Garland's life was?" Sam shook his head a bit. "His death. I mean, big sweet probably autistic guy, probably didn't even know what was going on. He'd have been _terrified_. We just have to recreate his death for him."

"That's crazy." Sam said, with a smirk.

"So was driving Constance Welch home, but it worked, didn't it, Sammy?"

"Is there even a way to do that?"

"I, uh, got some iron chains. We could engrave it with some spell-work." Bobby suggested.

"You guys get started on that, I'm gonna call and check on Dean." Sam said, pulling out his cell phone and walking away as Bobby walked to his trunk.

***************

Marion took the East wing of the mill, while Sam took the West and Bobby stayed in the car. "Any luck?" Bobby's voice came through the radio on static.

"Not on my end." Marion answered.

"Mine, either. I don't know what's wrong. Last time he came right at us. It's almost like he's, uh... like he's scared."

"So now what?" Bobby asked.

"I guess I gotta make him angry." Sam came over the radio.

"You want help?" Marion asked.

"No. Go double check the chain."

Marion nodded, walking out of the mill and toward the Impala. She yanked on the chain at the back of the Chevy and climbed into the passenger seat. "You okay, Marion?"

"Yeah. No worse than normal."

"That ain't true. Sam told me 'bout the djinn. I remember after Dean..."

"It's different. That djinn was _sent_ after me. I'm not messed up because I miss the dream. I knew it was fake the whole time. I'm messed up because... I really almost died. I've had a few close calls but I almost died, trapped in a dream that... I can't believe was my, you know, my wish."

"What was..."

"Fergus. Fergus, the demon. He was human. We were married. The rest is understandable. I wanted to be a doctor when I was 17 and of course I want my parents alive and my brothers happy. I want to not have the broken bones and broken emotions from what my father did to me. I don't _get_ Fergus, though."

"From what you've told me, Marion, and that ain't much, it seems like he was a positive force for you for a very long time. It doesn't matter that it ended up being fake. What you felt for him, that was real."

"Bobby, Punch it!!" Sam yelled from the mill. Bobby pushed the pedal to the floor and the Impala peeled out to the road outside the mill. He turned and looked behind him at the large man's ghost being pulled across the pavement. Marion marveled as the ghost disappeared in a cloud of grey smoke. She laughed as Bobby hit the brakes, jumping out to listen to the sounds of the mill dying down again.

"It worked! Oh, my gods, it worked!" She shouted, jumping up and down, excitedly. She pulled out her cell phone and dialed Dean. "Hey, D. You're alive?"

"Yep. You guys... it's... I'm gonna pack, come get me. There's a dead Sheriff on the floor here, so... come get me." Dean said, before hanging up.

************************

Dean handed a beer to each of his siblings and offered one to Bobby, who shook his head. "So, you guys road-hauled a _ghost_ with a chain?"

"Iron chain, etched with spellwork." Sam said.

"Hmm. That's a new one."

"It was all about fear. That's what he was most scared of." Marion said, twisting the cap off of her beer and flicking it at Dean.

"It was pretty brutal, though." Sam added with a smile.

"On the upside, I'm still alive, so uh, go team!"

"Yeah. How you feeling, by the way?" Sam asked.

"Fine."

"You sure, Dean? 'Cause this line of work can get awful scary." Bobby teased.

"I'm fine. You wanna go hunting? I'll hunt. I'll kill anything."

The other hunters looked between themselves before Marion giggled and Sam said, "Awww."

"He's adorable." Bobby said. Dean rolled his eyes and took a drink of his beer as everyone laughed at him. "I got to get out of here. You kids drive safe."

"You too, Bobby. Hey, thanks." Sam said, as Bobby got into his Chevelle and drove off. Sam looked over at Dean then at his feet as he kicked some pebbles on the ground. "So, uh... so, what did you see? Near the end, I mean." 

"Oh, besides a cop beating my ass?"

"Seriously."

Dean looked over his sister's head to Sam. He sucked his bottom lip into his mouth, then looked away. "Howler monkeys. Whole roomful of 'em. Those things creep the hell out of me."

"Right." Sam muttered, taking another drink of beer.

"No. Just the usual stuff, Sammy. Nothing I can't handle." Dean took another drink, then looked down at his twin. He could tell she knew there was more there, but he didn't say anything. He shook his head as she opened her mouth, so she closed it, again.

"Let's go, guys. I need some sleep." She said, putting two fingers into Dean's pocket and pulling his keys out. "I'll drive."

"You just said you need sleep. You think I'm gonna let you drive my Baby?" Dean asked, snatching the keys back.


	15. Cold as Ice

Marion sat at the bar and watched Sam hustle pool. It was sweet to see. He'd gotten good at it, almost seemed to enjoy it, now. Seeing Sam enjoy anything was always a treat. She couldn't help thinking about Halloween. Sam had put down Samhain, the strongest demon they'd come across other than Lilith, with his mind. She couldn't help wondering if Sam could do that with Lilith, too. Maybe putting down Lucifer's First would be that easy. Just... put Sam on a collision course and let him him do what Ruby taught him to do. The thought of Ruby turned her off from the idea and she turned back to her whiskey. "Excuse me!" Dean's voice cut through her thoughts from behind her. "My brother's a little sauced to be making bets."

"He insisted." Their mark said. 

"Yeah, but you've already taken, what, two bills off him? I'm just sayin'."

"Hey, shut up, Dean. I'm fine." Sam said, drunkenly.

"No, you're not fine." Marion said, standing and stepping toward the pool table. "You're drunk, little bro. And that's not just your money you're losing."

"Let's make it 500." Sam said, reaching into his pocket.

"500?" Dean asked, in mock surprise.

"Sure." The big guy answered, as Sam placed the wad of cash on the edge of the pool table.

"500. Your break." Brian said. Sam leaned over the table, awkwardly due to his height and faux drunkenness. His fingers tapped against the felt as he adjusted his aim with the cue. He let loose the cue ball and 4 balls went in, easily.

Sam looked impressed with himself as he surveyed the table, then looked across the table at the bar and his face fell. "Keep the money." He said, putting the cue down in the middle of the table and walking toward the bar.

"Keep the money? What-" Dean started as he and Marion's gazes followed Sam to the bar, and Ruby. Dean growled and followed him.

Marion walked around the pool table. "You touch that money, Brian, I break every bone in your hand."

"Your brothers were hustling me. I earned that-"

"No, you didn't. You didn't earn the $200 in your pocket, either. I'm gonna let you keep that, but this..." She picked the cash up. "...is mine."

"Girl, you got some balls comin' up to me like this." The large biker said, walking around to stand intimidatingly in front of her.

"Little boy, you don't know the balls I've got." Her eyes flicked to Dean and Sam at the bar with Ruby. "You, also don't know the rage I've got. So, if you want to tangle with me, I'm willing. But I _will_ break every one of the 27 bones in your right hand, before I go to work on your face."

Brian looked down at her, seeming to consider if she was telling the truth or not. He grunted, then put his cue on the table and walked away. "Guess I _am_ a scary bitch." She mumbled, pushing the cash into her jacket pocket. Marion walked up with a glare fixed on her face.

"I'm just delivering the news. You can do whatever you want with it. Far as I'm concerned, I told you, I'm done." Ruby said, jumping down from her bar stool and starting to rush out.

Sam grabbed her arm to stop her. "Wait, wait, wait. This hospital Anna escaped from, it got a name?"

"Connor Beverly Behavioral Medicine Center."

"Psych hold. You want us to chase down some maybe-nonexistent crazy person?" Dean growled, before taking a drink of his beer.

"Sammy. Be a dear and move out of the way." Marion said. Her voice was calm and low, but the edge on it made Ruby look to Sam for protection.

"You gonna put her down in the middle of a crowded bar?" Sam asked, turning to his big sister and looking down at the knife concealed next to her hip. "And why are you walking around with the demon-killing knife?"

"Seems like the best course of action here. Your demon could pop up at any time, my demon could pop up at any time." She twisted her wrist, the knife shining. "If she makes it out to her Mustang, she's gonna disappear. Let me gank her, then we can go find this Anna chick, for whatever reason."

"I support killing her, you know that, but crowded bar isn't the best setting for this." Dean said.

Marion pursed her lips and nodded. "Fine. Come on outside with me, Ruby."

"That's not happening."

Sam put his hand on Marion's shoulder. "Let her go. She just came to give us some info, now she's leaving. Let her leave."

"You can't possibly trust this-"

"Demon? You trusted one." Sam interjected.

"And where did that land me? There's no such thing as a good demon, Sam. Not Fergus and not this piece of shit." She said, but she moved out of the way and headed toward the parking lot.

"You better not be going out there to wait for her." Sam called after her.

"Bite me!" She called back.

Ruby shot a look at Dean. "Twins. Never really see it until she opens her mouth."

"Bite me." Dean drained his beer and followed his sister.

****************************

Marion was lying in the backseat of the Impala as Dean drove and Sam called the cops in Maine. "Can I get a copy of the missing persons report? Great. Okay. Thanks." She shook her head as Sam hung up his phone. "Well, Anna Milton's definitely real."

"Don't mean the case is real. And this hospital's a three-day drive."

"Not the way you drive. Besides, nowhere in the contiguous US is more than two-days drive, really." Marion provided from the backseat.

"We've driven further for less, Dean. You've got something to say, say it." Sam snapped.

"Oh, I'm sayin' it. This sucks."

"Concur." Marion growled.

"You guys aren't pissed we're going after the girl. You're pissed Ruby threw us the tip."

"Right. 'Cause as far as you're concerned, the hell-bitch is practically family. Yeah, boy, something major must've happened while I was downstairs, 'cause I come back and, and now _you're_ BFF with a demon? You didn't learn from Marion?"

"I told you guys. She helped me go after Lilith."

"Well, thanks for the thumbnail. Real vivid. You want to fill in a little detail?" Dean growled.

"Sure, Dean, let's trade stories. You first. How was Hell? Don't spare the details." Sam spit.

Marion sat up and looked at her brothers. "Hell was Hell, Sam. Living without Dean was a kind of Hell, too. It was probably worse for you, though, right? Because his twin can't feel his loss anywhere near as much as you. You know what I didn't do while our brother was being tortured, though? I _didn't_ pull away from everyone who cares about me to go hang out with a demon. And I had that option, too." Sam looked out the window, his thoughts falling to the months Dean was gone.

"It was dark... where Azazel put me. It was hot. Dark stone, it heated up like a pizza oven. It burned the first few months... until my skin adjusted." Marion shared, lying back down. "The demon that was in charge of me, he would burn me with ice. He thought it was hilarious. All I wanted the first few weeks was ice water in Hell, and he got his hands on some... dry ice." She chuckled, her eyes watering.

Sam and Dean looked at her in the rearview as she continued. "He covered my chest with it the first time he brought it in. It burned like... _worse_ than fire. I think, worse than that though, were the hours he spent slicing my skin. He had this dull knife. Like butter knife dull. Might've _been_ a butter knife. He'd take me from my cell and strap me down to this stone slab, pick a section of my body and that's where he'd cut that week. Same spot, over and over. Shallow cuts, 'cause the knife was dull, and he'd cut and cut until he reached something deeper than skin, then deeper than muscle. I have kerf marks on my bones. Bobby used some ancient magics and healed me... we're still working on my scars, though." Tears escaped from the corners of her eyes and ran into her hair and the confines of her ears. "The reason we don't talk about Hell, Sam, is because you don't want to hear about it and we don't want to relive it. We have to do that every night... _if_ we can sleep. We _want_ to hear about you and Ruby. That's the difference." She whispered.

Sam looked down, before closing his eyes and leaning his head against the window.

**********************************************

Marion stood off to the side, staring out the window as Sam and Dean questioned Anna Milton's shrink. "Of course, I want to help however I can."

"Now, the orderly has no recollection of Anna's escape?" Sam asked.

"Apparently, she knocked him unconscious. The blow caused some amnesia. He doesn't even remember coming into her room."

"That's a hell of a right hook to knock out a guy that's got 80 pounds on her." Dean said.

Marion looked around the room. It was too white. She didn't like it. Nothing should be this clean. "We think she may have planned this, waited behind the door." The shrink said. Marion sighed and excused herself from the conversation with a polite smile. When Dean and Sam walked out of the hospital, she was sitting on a bench, staring at the sky. It was grey. It was Maine, so that wasn't surprising, but she was trying to find the edges of clouds.

"You okay?" Dean asked.

"Yeah, sure. What'd you find out?" Her voice was distant as she stood.

"Something's definitely up with this chick. She has been having visions or whatever about the apocalypse. She saw the thing with the witnesses, the thing with Samhain. We're gonna head to her family home, see if she dropped by the house. You okay to come with us?" Dean asked.

"I'm fine." She muttered, walking toward the car.

Sam and Dean looked after her. "Maybe we should drop her at the motel. She doesn't, exactly, seem into this." Dean suggested.

"Dare you to say that to her face, Dean." Sam challenged as Marion laid her hand on the Impala's horn. The brothers shrugged at each other and walked over to the car.

*******************

Dean and Sam jogged up the blue stairs in front of the Miltons' house, but Marion carefully walked up them. Something felt wrong. There was a feeling of eyes on her. She felt irrationally uncomfortable. Dean knocked on the door and waited. "Maybe they're not home."

"Both cars in the driveway." Sam responded.

Marion reached forward and tried the doorknob. It popped open, so Marion pushed into the house. "Mr. and Mrs. Milton?" Dean called out.

"We're from the sheriff's department. We just wanted to ask you a couple of questions." Sam's eyes fell upon two bodies Marion was staring down at. Mr. and Mrs. Milton, dead on the living room floor, their throats cut. Marion stayed by the door as Sam stepped forward, leaning down next to the bodies and checking a yellow powder on the floor. "Sulfur. The demons beat us here. Whatever the deal is with this Anna girl..."

"Yeah, they want her. They're not screwing around." Dean turned to look around the room. "All right, so I'm 'Girl, Interrupted'..." Dean picked up several envelopes. "...and I know the score of the Apocalypse, just busted out of the nut-box... possibly using superpowers, by the way. Where do I go?"

Sam walked into the dining room and picked up a framed picture. "Hey, you got those sketches from Anna's notebook?" Marion handed the packet of papers to Dean who handed them over to Sam. "Check this out." He said, flipping through to a partial picture of a stained-glass window and holding it up next to the framed picture.

"She was drawing the window of her church."

"Over and over. If you were religious, scared, and had demons on your ass, where would you go to feel safe?" Sam asked.

****************

The church was beautiful. White wood and colorful stained glass. Marion was almost distracted by it as they walked into the church with their guns in hand. She followed her brothers up the stairs to the attic. Sam pointed to a stained glass window with a person hiding behind it. "Anna?" He called as the trio tucked their guns away. "We're not gonna hurt you. We're here to help. My name is Sam. This is my brother, Dean, and our sister, Marion."

"Sam? Not Sam Winchester?" A small voice called out.

Sam looked at his siblings and nodded slightly. "Uh, yeah."

Anna walked out. She had dark red hair and pale skin, she was wearing tight jeans and boots. Marion could feel Dean's attraction to the girl radiating off of him. "And you're Dean. _The_ Dean?"

"Well, yeah. The Dean, I guess."

"It's really you. Oh, my god. The angels talk about you." Anna walked forward, looking at Dean with admiration. "You were in Hell, but Castiel pulled you out, and some of them think you can help save us."

Her eyes lost their adoration as they turned onto Sam and Marion. "And some of them don't like either of you, at all. They talk about you three all the time lately. I feel like I know you."

"So, you talk to angels?" Dean asked.

"Oh, no. No, no way. Um, they probably don't even know I exist. I just kind of... overhear them."

"You overhear them?" Marion asked, running her eyes over the younger woman. There was something wrong about her, but she couldn't pinpoint it, yet.

"Yeah, they talk and sometimes I just... hear them in my head." Anna responded.

"Like... right now?" Dean's eyes squinted a bit as he asked.

"Not right this second, but a lot. And I can't shut them out, there are so many of them."

"So, they lock you up with a case of the crazies, when really you were just... tuning in to angel radio?" Dean clarified.

"Yes. Thank you." Anna seemed happy that someone believed her, finally.

"Anna, when did the voices start? Do you remember?" Sam asked as Marion turned, looking toward the door to the church attic.

"I can tell you exactly. September 18th."

"The day I got out of Hell."

"First words I heard, clear as a bell 'Dean Winchester is saved'."

"That must've made absolutely no sense to you." Marion mumbled, walking toward the huge stained-glass window.

"What do you think?" Dean asked. It was addressing both of his siblings, but Sam was the only one who acknowledged him.

"It's above my pay grade, man."

"Well, at least now we know why the demons want her so bad." Marion called out, as she peered through the colored glass to examine the churchyard.

"Yeah. They get a hold of you, they can hear everything the other side's cooking. You're 1-900-angel." Dean said this in his flirty voice, adding a chuckle to the end.

Anna gave a small chuckle of her own before asking, "Hey, um, do you know... are my parents okay? I... I didn't go home. I was afraid."

The Winchesters weren't able to answer, because Ruby rushed into the attic. "You got the girl? Good. Let's go."

"Ugh! Her face!" Anna exclaimed, backing away.

"It's okay. She's here to help." Sam said, putting up a reassuring hand.

Marion walked toward Anna as Dean said, "Yeah, don't be so sure."

"It's good to have someone else who can see her ugly mug. Hideous, isn't she?" Marion smirked at Sam, who rolled his eyes.

"We have to hurry." Ruby snapped.

"Why?" The twins asked.

"Because a demon's coming. Big-timer. We can fight later, Wonder Twins."

"Well, that's pretty convenient, showing up right when we find the girl with some bigwig on your tail?"

"I didn't bring him here. You did." Ruby accused.

"What?" Dean growled.

"He followed us from the house." Marion muttered. "I felt it. A demonic presence. I thought I just had my head still stuck in Hell-memories. I... should've said something."

"We got to go. Now."

"Guys." Sam pointed to a statue of the Madonna, whose eyes were beginning to leak blood.

"It's too late. He's here." Ruby's words prompted Sam to take Anna's arm and guided her away to hide in a closet.

"Okay. Stay in there. Don't move."

Sam pulled a large flask of holy water from the inside pocket of his jacket. "No, Sam, you've got to pull him right away." Ruby urged.

"Whoa, hold on a sec."

"Now's not the time to bellyache about Sam going dark side. He does his thing, he exorcises that demon, or we die." Ruby argued.

Sam looked at his brother and sister. He was searching for approval, but he wouldn't find it. So, he turned and put the flask back into his pocket. When the door burst open without anyone laying a finger on it, Marion froze in fear. Her breath came in short bursts as she watched the true face of Alistair shimmer under the surface of his vessel. He ran his hand along the banister, wiping away the dust as he stepped in front of the group. Sam put up his hand and attempted to pull Alistair from his vessel, causing his eyes to go white and him to put a hand up like he was choking... for second, before he coughed and looked at Sam with mock pity. "That tickles. You don't have the juice to take me on, Sam."

Alistair grabbed the air and pulled it toward him, causing Sam to fly across the room and down the attic stairs. As the demon watched their little brother fly, Dean looked over at Marion, still frozen, and reached into her jacket, pulling out Ruby's knife and rushing at him. The demon grabbed his arm and pulled him close. "Hello again, Dean." Alistair leveraged his hold on Dean to hit him against a wooden support beam, causing the knife to hit the floor. "Come on, Dean. Don't you recognize me? Oh, I forgot. I'm wearing a pediatrician, and you can't see me like dear Marion over there. But we were so close... in Hell." Alistair said between punches.

"Alistair."

Marion blinked out of her stupor as Sam pulled the knife off the floor and stabbed the demon with it. "You're gonna have to try a whole lot harder than that, son." Marion helped Sam grab Dean off the floor as Alistair pulled the knife from his chest. Dean looked pointedly at the stained-glass window at the back of the church. The Winchesters all nodded and rushed the window, jumping through it and rolling as they hit the glass-covered grass.

**************

Marion sat on the bed, staring at the wall as her twin spit blood into the sink and her little brother sewed up a deep gash on his arm. She hadn't checked her own body. She was sure that she had to have some cuts or fractures from the jump, but the numbness she felt was such that she couldn't even bring herself to move. Sam lifted a worried glance up to her. "Hey, Mare. You gonna give yourself a once-over?"

"I'm fine." She whispered.

"You haven't even taken off your jacket. There's glass in your hair." Sam pushed.

"I'm fine." She repeated. The tone was exactly the same.

Sam looked to Dean for support, but Dean just spit into the sink again and asked, "Are you almost done?"

"I'm going as fast as I can."

Dean turned and looked at his sister. She looked bad, but he understood. He'd wanted to freeze when he realized who was pounding his face in, too. "Hey, Mare. Wanna help me with this dislocated shoulder?" He picked up a bottle of whiskey and took a swig.

"I'm fine."

"Yeah. You look peachy, but that's not what I asked. My shoulder is killing me. Sam's busy taking his sweet time with his own arm. Help me with this."

Marion stood and nodded. "Lie down."

Dean sighed and lied down on his back on the floor. She shook a little as she grabbed his arm and pulled firmly, until she felt it pop back into place. She dropped his arm and walked to the bathroom, shedding her jacket and dropping it to the floor, as Dean got up and took another swig of the whiskey.

"Gimme that." Sam demanded, before pouring the liquor on his wound.

"So, you lost the magic knife, huh?" Dean teased.

"Yeah, saving _your_ ass. Who the hell was that demon?"

"No one good." Dean shot a look at Marion as she poked her way down her ribs. He heard the unmistakable hiss of her finding a broken rib, but she didn't complain, moving to the other side to repeat the process. "We gotta find Anna."

"Ruby's got her. I'm sure she's okay." Sam said, standing.

"You sure about Ruby? 'Cause I think it's just as likely she used us to find radio girl and then brought that demon in to kill us." Dean walked into the bathroom and put his hand in his sister's hair, shaking shards of glass into the basin.

"No, she took Anna to keep her safe."

"Yeah. Well, why hasn't she called to tell us where she is?" Dean ran his hand, firmly, down her spine, noting the small whimper she gave at her fifth thoracic.

"Because that demon is probably watching us right now, waiting to follow us right back to Anna again. That's why he let us go." Sam groaned on the bed.

Dean chuckled as he grabbed an ice pack and put it on his arm. Marion continued her self-exam, finally noticing a large chunk of purple glass stabbed into her right thigh. "You call this letting us go?" Dean asked, turning away to look down at Sam.

"Yeah, I do. Look, killing us would've been no problem to that thing. That's why, for now, we just got to lay low and wait for Ruby to contact us."

"How's she gonna do that?" Marion asked, as she wrapped her fingers around the glass and yanked it out. She dropped the glass in the sink. "Ah! Oh, my gods."

"Why do you trust her so much?" Dean asked, grabbing a towel and handing it to Marion.

Sam sighed. "I told you."

"You gotta do better than that." Dean said, walking toward Sam. "Hey, and I'm not trying to pick a fight here. I mean, I really want to understand. But I need to know more. I mean, we _deserve_ to know more."

"Because... she saved my life." Marion jumped up on the sink counter and lied down putting a booted foot high against the wall to provide elevation for the gash. Her hand pressed the towel down, firmly. "I'll come clean. See, I didn't take it well when you died. It _was_ my own kind of Hell. So, I was drunk, all the time. I go into my motel room and there's a demon waiting. Got the drop on me. Ruby comes up, takes her knife back, talks about how Lilith sent her to a horrible part of Hell..."

"All parts of Hell are horrible. Why do you think the demons clamber to be on Earth?" Marion called out, just to let her brothers know that she was listening, too.

"Right, well. Ruby said that Lilith let her go if she was willing to come upstairs and put me out of my misery. I was in a bad place... I-I told her to do it. She didn't. She killed the other demon, instead. And then, we ran. We got in the Impala and just started driving. I didn't trust her, either, back then. I snapped at her about not asking for help and she said that... Lilith gets creative when she gets pissed. She wanted me to know what she'd been through for helping us. She made sure I realized that she was a fugitive and that she'd done it all for me. She said she wanted to help. I was only interested in her help if she could help me get you back, which she couldn't. I told her to get out of the car, she got all offended, so I got offended about the meatsuit she was wearing. I told her to let the secretary she'd hijacked go or I was gonna send her back to Hell. That would've been a death sentence for her. So, she smoked out, went and grabbed a comatose chick who was about to die."

"Bring me the sewing kit." Marion called out.

"I can do that for you." Dean offered.

"Yeah? With your one good arm? I got this, D." Marion said, jumping down and pulling her blood-soaked jeans down her legs. Dean handed her the needle and thick nylon thread, then grabbed the whiskey, poured himself a glass, and handed the bottle over. "Something to numb the pain."

Sam sighed as Dean turned and focused his attention back onto him, walking over to sit in a chair under the window. "She showed up at the squat I was hanging at and she said she couldn't give me you, Dean, but she could get me Lilith. All I had to do was learn to use... my abilities. I was ready as soon as she suggested it. She told me not to get too eager, said we had the time to get it right, so 'Let's get it right'. She told me she wanted me to have patience and get sober and she would teach me everything she knew."

"So? What'd she teach you?" Dean asked.

"Well, the first thing I learned... I'm a crappy student. We put a Devil's Trap on the floor of the squat and she brought in demons for me to practice on. I sucked... I mean, I think I wanted it to be an immediate thing and it wasn't. Ruby reassured me, said that I'd get better with time. She assured me that everything would get better. She knew I was depressed and she pulled me... she tried to pull me out of it. It just made me mad, at first. I mean, she's a demon, where does she get off? But she... she used to _be_ human, and she's faced loss before. And then... she touched me with all this... care. I pulled away, at first. I wasn't... ready for that kind of interaction, but she was persistent. She kissed me and I, I pretty much ran. It was too big. I knew it was wrong. But it felt right, you know? She grabbed my hands and  _made_ me feel her. And she feels nice. And... she's been around long enough to know her way around... she's actually pretty amazing and there's a thing she does-"

"Sam?" Dean interrupted.

"Yeah?"

"Too much information."

"Hey, I told you I was coming clean."

"Yeah, but now I feel dirty." Dean said, grabbing his glass to take another drink.

"I knew you were fucking her." Marion said, grabbing her Zippo from her jean pocket and her balisong knife from her jacket. She flicked the flame on and held the knife over it. "I never fucked Fergus, just so you know. Since that seems like something I have to clarify now."

"Well, he was like your evil fairy godfather, so I hope not." Dean marveled at how fast she'd finished the stitches and how she hadn't made a noise doing it.

"Never said I didn't consider it. Just didn't do it. 'Cause he's a demon." She carefully placed the red-hot knife against her thigh, right between her stitches to keep from burning the thread.

"Okay, well, uh, brain-stabbing imagery aside. So far, all you've told me about is a manipulative bitch who, uh, screwed you, played mind games with you, and did everything in the book to get you to go bad."

"Yeah, well, there's more to the story."

Dean leaned forward as Marion finished cauterizing the wound and pulled her jeans back up her legs. "Just... skip the nudity, please."

"Pretty soon after... that, um... I put together some signs... omens." Sam continued.

"Saying what?"

"Lilith was in town. And I wanted to strike her first. Ruby told me that I wasn't ready, yet. I was convinced that it was now or never. She told me to wait. Wait until I get it right. I was still having trouble with the hands-off exorcisms. But I had the knife. She told me not to use it. She told me to wait, that I can't fly in there reckless. She said, 'You get one shot, and you're it. You're the only one who can do it.' and... then she realized that I kinda... still didn't want to live through it. She called it a kamikaze attack. Said that if I killed Lilith and lived that I'd have to go on living without you, Dean. And then she used that against me. She pulled the whole, 'This isn't what Dean would have wanted. This isn't what he died for' thing. I started to leave. She tried to stop me. I almost slit her throat with her own knife. I left her alive, but I left her, though. And I went searching for Lilith. I found this house. Little blonde girl sitting at a table filled with sweets; candy, cupcakes. I sneaked in, up to the table, but it was a trap. It wasn't Lilith. I got ambushed, got the knife knocked out of my hand. I was fucked. But Ruby showed at the last minute. She got her knife and saved me and the girl. So, I returned the favor. I exorcised the other demon... with my mind. It was the first really successful... exorcism I did." Sam sighed, deeply. "Ruby came back for me. Whatever you have to say, she saved me. More than that, she got through to me. What she said to me... it's what you would've said, Dean. If it wasn't for her, I wouldn't be here."

Marion walked forward as her brothers exchanged meaningful looks. Her hand came up to connect with the back of Sam's head. "You didn't _have_ to find solace in a demon, Sammy. You had me and Bobby waiting for you, ya bitch."

A knock came to the motel room door. "Housekeeping."

"Not now!" Dean shouted.

"Sir, I've got clean towels." Came through the door.

Dean stood and opened the door. "Couldn't you just leave 'em at the door?"

The maid pushed in, pressing the towels into Dean's arms. Marion sighed as Ruby closed the curtains and handed a folded piece of paper to Sam. "I'm at this address."

"I'm sorry. What?"

"Give you one guess." Marion said, picking up her over-shirt and jacket from the bathroom floor and putting her accessories back in her pockets.

"Go now. Go through the bathroom window, don't stop, don't take your car, don't pass GO. There are demons in the hallway and in the parking lot."

"Ruby?" Sam guessed.

"Okay, yes, so I'm possessing this maid for a hot minute. Sue me." The answer was sassy. Definitely Ruby.

"What about-"

"Coma girl? Slowly rotting on the floor back at the cabin with Anna, so I've got to hurry back. See you when you get there. Go!" Ruby ordered, before rushing out the door.

"You guys up for climbing out a window?" Marion asked.

"You're the one who got hit in the leg." Dean responded, pulling on his jacket.

"I'm numb enough."

"Is that physical numbness, or emotional?" The male twin asked, amusement tugging at the edges of his voice.

"Couldn't even tell ya. You gonna need help with that bum arm, D.?"

"What, you think I can't climb out a window one-handed?"

"Guess we'll have to see." She said, walking into the bathroom and pushing the window up.

***************

They trudged through the woods up to a cabin. Sam knocked on the door. "Glad you could make it." Ruby said, opening the door and letting them in.

"Yeah, thanks." Sam said, walking up to Anna, sitting on the couch. "Anna, are you okay?"

"Yeah. I think so. Ruby's not like other demons. She saved my life." Anna said, admiration in her voice.

"Yeah, I hear she does that." Dean said, before turning to Ruby. "I guess I... You know."

"What?" Ruby asked, her eyebrows pulling together.

Dean faltered as Marion studied Anna, trying to pinpoint what was wrong with her. "I guess I owe you for... Sam. And I just wanted... you know..."

"Don't strain yourself." Ruby said, before pointedly looking at Marion.

"You aren't even getting _that_ much out of me." She said, shaking her head.

"Okay, then. Is the moment over?" Dean asked. Ruby nodded. "Good, 'cause that was awkward."

"Hey, Sam, you think it'd be safe to make a quick call, just to tell my parents I'm okay? They must be completely freaked." Anna asked, looking up at him from the couch.

"Uh..."

Anna's face fell. "What?"

"Anna, um... your parents..." Sam started, sitting next to her on the couch.

"What about them?" Anna's voice cracked.

"Look, I'm sorry." He whispered.

"No, they're not..." A slight blue light started glowing around the edges of the redheaded girl. Marion seemed to be the only one who noticed.

"Anna, I'm sorry."

She threw her head into her hands, sobbing. "Why is this happening to me?" The blue light pulsed brighter as she rocked back and forth.

"I don't know." Sam whispered, putting his hand on her back as she cried.

She suddenly stopped sobbing and sat up. "They're coming." She whispered, frantically, as the lights began to flicker.

"Back room." Dean ordered as Ruby locked the door. Sam rushed Anna to the back as Marion pulled her Glock out.

Ruby ran to the duffel and ran her hands through it. "Where's the knife?"

"Uh... about that..." Dean started.

"You're kidding."

"Hey, don't look at me." Dean said, looking at Sam.

"Thanks a lot." Dean smiled at him

"Great. Just peachy. Impeccable timing, guys, really."

"Knife wouldn't work, anyway. Doesn't work on big-timers." Marion growled as the door at the back of the cabin started to shake. They all held up their guns, except Ruby, who just stood next to Dean looking worried. The door burst open and a rush of wind curled around them. She felt, almost, relieved as Castiel walked through the door, but it was short-lived as Uriel closely followed him. Ruby must've felt exactly the same about them, because her eyes reflexively turned black.

"Please tell me you're here to help. We've been having demon issues all day." Dean said, dropping the shotgun to his side.

"Well, I can see that. You want to explain why you have the _stain_ in the room?" Uriel stared at Ruby as she forced her eyes back to normal and Dean opened his mouth, trying for an answer.

"We're here for Anna." Castiel clarified.

"Here for her like... _here_ for her?" Dean asked.

"Stop talking." Uriel spat out. "Give her to us."

"Are you gonna help her?" Sam asked.

"No. She has to die."

"Shoulda known, with Uriel the Annihilator riding shotgun, Cas." Marion bit back at them.

"You want Anna? Why?" Sam asked.

"Out of the way." Uriel said, attempting to walk further into the room.

"Whoa, whoa, whoa. Okay, I know she's wiretapping your angel chats or whatever, but it's no reason to gank her." Dean reasoned.

"Don't worry. I'll kill her gentle." Uriel said, with a sadistic smile.

"You're some heartless sons of bitches, you know that?"

Castiel looked down. "As a matter of fact, we are. And?" He looked up, his eyes focused on Dean.

"And? Anna's an innocent girl." Sam argued.

"She is far from innocent." Castiel responded, his face conflicted.

"What's that supposed to mean?" Sam asked.

"It means she's worse than this abomination you've been screwing. Now give us the girl." Uriel demanded.

Dean looked to his siblings, who confirmed with a glance that they were willing to fight. He turned his look on Uriel. "Sorry. Get yourself another one. Try JDate."

"Who's gonna stop us? You three? Or this demon whore?" Uriel grabbed Ruby's arm and flung her into the window by the door, shattering it out. She fell to the floor but was quickly picked up by Uriel, who raised his hand to smite her.

Marion was surprised that Dean rushed to her aid as Castiel stepped toward Sam, who stepped backward away from him. "Cas, stop, please." Sam begged, before the angel pushed two fingers into his forehead and he fell to the floor, unconscious. As Uriel beat his fist into Dean's face, Marion urged time to stop. And it did. As the scene around her slowed to a halt, Marion looked around.

Castiel had stopped with his hand on the door. He was looking around, too. "What happened?" His voice didn't hide his confusion.

"I-I guess I needed a little time to think." Marion was surprised at what she'd managed.

"Everyone is frozen."

"She looks _wrong_. Blue around the edges." Marion took a few cautious steps toward Castiel, whose brow furrowed in confusion. "See, angels, you look like blue light that's trying to break out of your vessel. Brilliant, bright blue energy, right on the verge of blowing up the body you borrowed. Anna, she's... a little earlier, she found out that the demons killed her parents and she had this surge of... blue energy around the edges. Nothing like what I see with you and Dick-wings over there, but... there's angelic power in her. Not much, but..."

Castiel let go of the doorknob and turned to her. "You can see _our_ true visages? Not just the demons'?"

Marion nodded. "I could hear you, too. That night, at the Astoria Hotel, when you busted out all the windows and mirrors trying to talk to Dean, I could hear it. I never said anything because... what does it matter? I'm... not the special one. I'm just the... wildcard." She whispered. She took another step closer to him. "Tell me about Anna. What, was she an angel vessel at some point? Somebody left a little energy in her? Molested by an angel? What?"

He looked around. "You aren't going to undo this until you know?"

"I'm not exactly sure how I did it, so I can't make any promises about fixing it, but... what is she? Why do you want to kill her?"

"Betrayal. I can't exactly explain. You wouldn't understand, you're human, but..." Castiel stepped directly in front of her and looked into her eyes. "She committed a crime as heinous as any can commit."

"Coming from a being who was perfectly fine destroying an entire town full of people, that seems... big."

Castiel looked down, sadly. "It is."

"Cas... Look..." She reached out and grabbed the angel's hand. For some reason, it felt like the best way to connect with him. "This, obviously, is big. But whoever she is, whatever she did, she's in there and she's _terrified_."

"She should be." He whispered, his gaze coming down to stare at their joined hands.

"She shouldn't be terrified of you. She's a good woman. She loves God. Whatever..."

"I have my orders."

"This is one of those situations where you might need to question, Castiel."

"Soldiers _can't_ question. Never."

"Right. No questions. No emotions. No heart." Marion said, pulling her hand back. Castiel's hand hung in the air for a few moments, before it fell to his side. "I can't let you kill her, Cas. I don't know what I can do about it, but... look around. I've obviously got _some_ tricks up my sleeves."

"I will have to risk that." Castiel turned and put his hand on the knob again. Everything started moving again as a bright white light cut through the cabin and he was thrown out through the roof of the cabin. Uriel stopped punching Dean just before he, too, was thrown away.

"What the..." Dean muttered as Marion dropped down next to Sam and started to pat his cheek to try to wake him. He helped Ruby up from her spot under the window. "Come on."

Ruby traded places with Marion, who followed Dean into the back room. Anna leaned against a table, blood running down her arm. As Dean rushed to her side and pulled out a handkerchief to wrap the wound, Marion stepped left to look at the symbol Anna had drawn in blood on the mirror. "Are they... are they gone?" She asked.

"Did you kill them?" Dean asked.

"No." She looked up as Sam and Ruby walked in. "I sent them away... far away."

"You wanna tell me how?" Dean asked.

Everyone else turned to the mirror Marion was already analyzing. "Marion was talking to one of them and that just popped in my head. I don't know how I did it. I just did it."

"When was Marion..." Dean started.

"After Sam went down and before Uriel got done beating your face in. Just pleading for Cas to... it doesn't matter. Ruby, can you do us a favor and apply pressure, hold her arm above her head?"

Ruby nodded and move Anna to the bed, holding the handkerchief and the arm above her head. Dean and Sam move their huddle out the door. "So, what do we think?"

"I think Anna's getting more interesting by the second." Sam responded.

"Yeah, I agree. And what did they mean by 'She's not innocent'?"

Marion bit her tongue. Cas hadn't told her much, so it didn't seem worth the add. "They want her badly. Orders from on high and it isn't just 'cause she's privy to their plans. I mean, look at that blood spell."

"Yeah, that's some serious crap, guys." Sam whispered.

"Something's going on with her. You two see what you can find out."

"What are _you_ gonna do?" Marion and Sam asked, together.

"Anna may have sent the angels to the outfield, but, sooner or later, they're gonna be back. We got to get ourselves safe now."

"Bobby's?" Marion asked.

"Safest place _I_ can think of."

"Cool. Let's go get transport." She said, walking out of the cabin.

Dean and Sam looked after her. "One minute she's catatonic, next she's gung-ho. She worryin' _you_?"

"She's our sister, Dean. If anyone can handle this situation, it's her. But I don't know... if that demon shows up again..."

"She won't freeze again."

"You sure about that?" Ruby called from the back room.

"She freezes, she dies. She knows that." Dean said, walking toward the broken window.

"She knew that back at the church, too. As soon as she saw him, though..." Ruby started, moving off the bed and walking up to the brothers. "Look, your sister was in Hell. She was there for a very long time... as a _human_. I can't imagine the things the guys downstairs did to her. The fact that she doesn't turn into a puddle at the smell of sulfur is a _miracle_. If she didn't hate me so much, I'd admire her. She's strong and she's scary and she's got to be the most badass woman I've _ever_ met, but everyone's got their limits. Maybe she should back off on this one."

"Ruby..." Sam started.

"Look. Send her on a goose-chase. She's a liability in this. If that demon shows up and she freezes when you're counting on her... she could get us all killed. Send her somewhere safe, somewhere fun. Miami, Key West... ooh, send her to DisneyWorld. Just get her somewhere far away and safe."

"That's not gonna be a problem." Dean said, walking back from the broken window by the door. "She's gone."

"You sure? Maybe she just got tired of waiting for me." Sam said, walking over to the window to see why Dean had come to the conclusion he had. A word was written in the dirt of the path up to the door, but Sam couldn't quite make it out. "What's that say?"

"'Mercury'." Dean answered, but his brother and the two women just stared at him in confusion. "Quicksilver. She's running. As fast as she can... away from here. And probably away from Bobby's since I told her exactly where we're gonna go."

"Why don't I know this code?" Sam asked, offended.

"It's a twin code, Sam, don't... she came up with it when we were 12, when she was reading all those comics. She said, 'If things get so bad that I ever have to run away, I won't leave a note. Just one word to let you know that I wasn't taken, that I am running as fast as I can, as fast as Quicksilver'. 'Mercury'."

"Great. Problem solved. You can run her down after we survive this." Ruby said, walking back into the back room and helping Anna up. "Let's go. You've got shotgun, sweetheart. Dean can take the back."

***************************************

Marion sat on the hood of the car she'd stolen and waited. She picked a back road, pulled off to the side and took all of her weapons out of her pockets. She called to Castiel and waited. "She used to be an angel, didn't she?" Marion said as soon as she heard the fluttering behind the car. She slid off the hood and turned to him. "I don't have any weapons. I didn't call you here to fight. Thank you for coming alone. Uriel... bugs me."

Castiel stepped forward. "Why are _you_ alone?"

"I... left them at the cabin. I had to think. Being with Ruby, how she acts, the smell of her... it... reminds me of Fergus, how he played me. Sam's even got Dean crying her praises, but I'm not convinced. But I am convinced about Anna. 'Betrayal', you said. I thought over that backward and forward. What kind of betrayal could this God-fearing girl have perpetrated? Then I remembered... she's blue around her edges. Maybe she used to be completely blue. Maybe she was a soldier who went AWOL."

"AWOL?" He stepped forward, his blue eyes locked in on her green ones.

"Absent Without Leave. Basically, ran away. Abandoned her post. Decided to be human." Marion explained. Castiel's head cocked to the side, but he didn't deny or confirm her theory. "Anna was an angel. Somehow, she lost her angelic energy, but there's enough there in her for me to see it, especially if she's emotionally charged."

His eyes stayed on hers as he moved to stand directly in front of her. "It's called 'Grace'. The angelic energy you see around her edges, it is called Grace. She used to have quite a bit more of it. She ripped out the majority as she fell."

"She defected. She fell... and that's a death sentence for you angels."

"The last angel who fell was Lucifer. Anael knew what she was choosing when she decided to abandon us." Castiel reached forward and took her hand in his, an awkward mimic of her actions in the cabin. "Where did Dean take Anna?"

Marion patted his hand with her free one. "I don't know. I left, remember? And looking at me with those big blue eyes isn't gonna get you a different answer."

"How else would I look at you?"

Marion chuckled. "I mean, you get... you've got this permanent bed-head and pretty blue eyes... You're pretty hot for a heartless hammer, but it won't get you an answer." She whispered, pulling her hand back.

"Is that a sexual reference?" Castiel asked.

"It's like talking to a super-powerful child in a sexy body. Like Tom Hanks in Big, if he was a super-hero." She said to herself, opening the car door.

"You're attracted to my vessel?" Castiel asked.

"Not letting this go, are you?" She asked, getting into the driver's seat. Castiel was suddenly in her passenger seat. "That's a 'no'. Yes, Castiel, the devout man you picked as your vessel is very pleasing to my eyes and I happen to think power is sexy, which you have in spades. That's just how I am, but the fact that you're hot doesn't change the fact that i don't know where Dean took Anna and Ruby."

"So, where are you going, then?" The angel asked.

"Away. The demon that attacked us..." A shudder ran through her, forcing her to tighten her grip on the steering wheel. "The demon that attacked us at Anna's church is called Alistair. He's... I was in Hell a long time, Cas, and he tortured me in ways... you probably don't need to imagine. You've probably seen Alistair's handiwork before. I'm more scared of him than I am anything else ever. Being around Anna puts me on a collision course with you and Uriel and a collision course with him."

"You have nothing to fear from Alistair. If you give us Anna, he will go back to Hell."

"I don't have her, and I... wouldn't give her to you if I did. She should be allowed to live her life as a human. Free Will shouldn't be punishable by death."

"She abandoned us. She was my superior officer and she left."

"God left, too, didn't he?" There was silence, prompting Marion to look to her right at her suddenly empty shotgun seat. Marion nodded at herself and turned over the engine.


	16. Godzilla vs. Mothra

Marion took a deep breath, and opened Bobby's door. "Don't be afraid." Anna's voice came from the library. "I'm not like the others."

"I don't find that very reassuring." Ruby responded.

"Neither do I."

"So... Castiel, Uriel- they're the ones that came for me?" Anna asked as Marion made her way to the doorway. Dean noticed her, but just nodded his acknowledgement from the edge of his chair next to Bobby's desk.

"You know them?" Sam asked.

"We were kind of, in the same foxhole." Anna explained.

"So, what, were they, like, your bosses or something?" Dean asked.

"Try the other way around." Marion answered for the angel.

Dean gave Anna an appraising look as the others responded to Marion's sudden appearance. "Look at you." He said, appreciatively.

"But now, they want to kill you?" Pam asked.

"Orders are orders. I'm sure I have a death sentence on my head."

"Why?"

"I disobeyed... which, for us, is about the worst thing you can do. I fell."

"Meaning?" Dean asked.

"She fell to Earth." Pamela clarified.

"Became human." Marion finished.

"Wait a minute. I don't understand. So, angels can just _become_ human?" Sam asked, shaking his head like he could shake some understanding into it.

"It kind of hurts." Anna said, starting to pace in front of Dean, Sam and Pamela. "Try cutting your kidney out with a butter knife. That _kind_ of hurt. I ripped out my Grace."

"Come again?" Dean asked.

"Grace is angel energy." Marion answered as Anna opened her mouth. "What makes them... angels. And I've had my kidney cut out with a butter knife, so I know what that feels like. You must've really wanted... what we've got."

Anna nodded, slightly. "My mother, Amy, couldn't get pregnant. Always called me her little miracle. She had no idea how right she was."

"So, you just forgot that you were God's little Power Ranger?" Dean asked as she turned away, pacing toward Marion with her arms crossed over her chest.

"The older I got, the longer I was human, yeah."

Ruby scoffed. "I don't think you all appreciate how completely screwed we are."

"Ruby's right. Heaven wants me dead."

"And Hell just _wants_ her. A flesh-and-blood angel that you can question, torture, that bleeds. Sister, you're the Stanley Cup. And sooner or later, Heaven or Hell, they're gonna find you."

"I know. And that why... I'm gonna get it back." Anna responded, pacing in front of the desk again.

"What?" Sam asked, clearly still lost.

"My Grace."

"You can do that?"

"If I can find it." Anna responded, determinedly.

"So, what, you're just gonna take some divine bong hit, and, shazam, you're Roma Downey?"

"Something like that."

"Way to dumb it down for the class, Dean." Marion muttered.

"All right." Dean glared at his sister, before smiling at Anna. "I like this plan. I like that there's a plan. So, where's this Grace of yours?"

"Lost track. I was falling about 10,000 miles per hours at the time."

"Wait. You mean falling, like, literally?" Sam asked, an idea hitting him.

"Yes."

"Like the way a human eye can see? Like a comet, maybe, or a meteor?"

"Why do you ask?"

"Astronomy books. On it." Marion said, walking past the desk to grab several books from Bobby's shelves.

"All right. You geeks work on that. I'm gonna take Pamela home." Dean said, standing and pulling his keys out.

Pam stood, feeling her way to Marion and wrapping her arms around her. "These things that you can do, they'll only get stronger with time. Put a little effort in and you'll be running circles around these men. Stronger than baby brother."

"Doubt that."

"You gonna argue with the blind psychic?" Pam asked, out loud, pulling away.

Marion chuckled as Dean put a hand on Pam's shoulder. "Guess not. It was good to see you, Pam."

"All right, you get one of those." Pam said with a smile.

"What, you think I'm gonna watch what I say just cause Anna's buddy Castiel blinded you? Nah, you know me too well to expect that."

"Next time." 

"Til next time." Marion confirmed, as Dean led Pam out.

Marion handed the books to Sam, who opened them. "So, where'd you run off to?"

"Had to clear my head. And I had to get some Neosporin. The cut on my leg's infected." She deflected.

"So, 'mercury', huh?" Sam asked, as Ruby and Anna walked into the kitchen.

"It was... originally, it was for if Dad ever hit me so hard that I felt I had to leave. The other day, I... took a blow. I felt I had to leave. You... I try really hard. I don't think you know how hard I try." She whispered, hoping the women in the kitchen couldn't hear. "I fight it, all day, every day. This feeling like I'm drowning. I fight for these little moments where I'm not treading water, but I'm 266 years old, Sammy. It's getting hard to find peace and when I froze in that church... I had to... make sure that I was... I had to go make sure I didn't freeze on purpose."

The amount of truth in that sentence scared her. Even though it wasn't the truth, it was. Sam looked over the edge of his book, eyes shining with pity, so she shook her head. "I'm fine. I'm back. I'm fine. Just..." She cleared her throat. "I won't freeze again. I know I won't."

"Are you sure? I mean... for everyone's safety, it might be better for you to... sit this one out?" Sam's tone turned questioning as he lost his nerve.

"That demon... the one from the church... I owe it to myself to, at least, _try_ to make him bleed."

"Is he... you froze because he was the one that... was in charge of you down there?"

Marion nodded. "But... I was just... I was in shock. I evaluated everything that happened in that church, everything that happened in that cabin. I was shocked when he walked up those stairs. But now, I'm mad, and I'm excited to be able to do something about it. He's in a meatsuit. He can be hurt, just have to figure out how." She said, with a smile 

Sam smiled and reached a hand out to pat his sister's shoulder. "Awesome. Let's dig in."

**********************

Marion took two cups of coffee and walked out to the scrapyard. She handed one to Anna and hopped up onto the hood of the car the angel was leaning on. "I made you a double-double. Didn't really know how you take it, but..."

"Thanks." Anna said, taking a drink. "What are you?" She asked, quietly.

Marion turned to her, affecting a confused look. "What do you mean?"

"I remember you talking to Castiel at the cabin. You froze everyone. Your brothers, a demon and an angel. Why can do that?"

She closed her eyes and swallowed. "My brothers don't know I can... I don't even know all of what I can do, but... I've been around a while, Anna."

"Ruby said you were in Hell, as a human."

"I was there for 239 years. It had its effects on my mind and body, but... I learned to tap into... things I can't really explain. I didn't mean to freeze everyone at the cabin. I just needed time to think and then, everyone stopped moving."

"But you didn't freeze Castiel."

"He's not completely unreasonable. Not like Uriel. I've... had real conversations with Castiel. He wants to understand, I think. And that's why I left him moving, maybe. Like I said, it wasn't a conscious decision to shut down the fight."

"Why don't you tell Sam and Dean about your abilities?"

"Because I don't understand them, really, myself. And... with the way Dean and the angels have reacted to Sam's... abilities. It's better to keep it to myself. Are you gonna..."

"Tell on you?" Anna asked, turning her head to look at Marion. "No. I don't have much room to talk, do I?"

Marion nodded, pushing away from the car. "Thanks. I'm gonna head inside, see if Sam's got anything."

Ruby looked up at her as she walked in. "Hey." Marion nodded at her. "Uh, look, I know you don't like me much, Mare, but..."

"Oh, don't. You don't get to call me that."

"Fine. Marion. I just wanted to let you know that I've got your back, whether you want it or not. I know about... Alistair. I know he's the one that had you-"

"Stop. I'm... I _don't_ need you to have my back, Ruby. And a _demon_ reminding me of the torture I went through in Hell, it doesn't help me, at all."

Ruby looked to Sam, then walked away. "She's trying to help." Sam said, from Bobby's desk, looking at her from behind the computer.

"For all I know, Sam, she's best friends with Alistair. She could have watched while he sliced me to pieces. You don't know. I don't know. And all the 'she saved my life' stories aren't going to change how I feel. So, let's just go ahead and find Anna's Grace so we can get this going."

Sam sighed. "March '85. Found where she came down. Also, found another projectile across Kentucky at the exact same time. I'm trying to find where the Grace came down."

"Okay. So, you've got this. I'm... gonna go get some food." Marion walked into the kitchen and grabbed a loaf of bread, quickly making herself a sandwich.

"I think I found it. I'm gonna go grab Anna." Sam said, walking out into the yard. Marion sat in the kitchen and munched on a peanut butter and grape jelly sandwich as everyone filed into the library and looked at the papers Sam printed up. "Union, Kentucky. Found some accounts of a local miracle."

"Yeah?"

"Yeah. In '85, there was an empty field outside of town. Six months later, there was a full-grown oak. They say it looks a century old, at least."

"Anna, what do you think?" Dean asked.

"The Grace. Where it hit, it could have done something like that, easy." Anna confirmed.

"So, Grace ground zero... it's not destruction. It's..."

"Pure creation."

"All right. Let's go. Marion, you coming?" Dean asked. Marion was already putting her jacket on.

***********************

Marion sat between her brothers as they drove to Kentucky. She didn't want to spend a 12 hour journey next to Ruby. Dean's eyes fell on the rear view mirror and he laughed, lightly. "What?" Ruby asked.

"Nothing. It's just... an angel and a demon riding in the backseat. It's lie the setup to a bad joke... or a Penthouse Forum letter."

"Dude. Reality... Porn." Sam chastised.

"You call this reality?" Marion muttered, looking at the women in the backseat.

****************

Marion followed behind as they all walked through the woods to the place where the gas station clerk had sent them. The tree was huge, gorgeous, shining blue around the edges. "It's beautiful."

"It's where the Grace touched down. I can feel it." Anna said, looking up at it.

"You ready to do this?" Dean asked.

"Not really." She took a deep breath and led them forward, stepping up over the roots.

"Anna, what are we even looking for?" Sam asked, as Anna placed her hand on the trunk.

"It doesn't matter. It's not here. Not anymore. Someone took it." Anna's hopes were dashed.

"Let's go. We can hole up in that barn we saw on the way in." Marion said, turning away and stomping through the trees. She pulled the barn door open and walked in, not waiting for the others. She sat across from Anna, who seemed lost in her head.

"We still got the hex bags. I say we head back to the panic room." Dean suggested.

"What, forever?" Ruby growled.

"I'm just thinking out loud!" Dean defended.

"Oh, you call that thinking?" Ruby asked.

"Hey! Hey, hey, hey. Stop it." Sam chastised, walking toward Dean, who was glaring down at Ruby.

"Anna's Grace is gone. You understand? She can't angel up. She can't protect us. We can't fight Heaven _and_ Hell. One side, maybe, but not both. Not at once."

"Um... guys?" Anna interrupted. "The angels are talking again."

"What are they saying?" Marion asked, turning her head away from the scene to look at the redhead.

"It's weird. Like a recording... a loop. It says, 'Dean Winchester gives us Anna by midnight, or..."

"Or what?"

"... 'or we hurl him back to damnation.'" Anna finished.

Dean's eyes went wide with fear, as Marion tried to think through a way to make everything freeze again. That would be an asset in this fight, if she could harness it. "Anna." Sam started. "Do you know of any weapon that works on an angel?"

"To what?" Sam gave Anna a pointed look. "To kill them?"

"That may be our only option." Marion whispered.

"Nothing we could get to... not right now." Anna responded.

"Okay, wait, wait. I say we call Bobby. We get him back from Hedonism." Dean started, but Sam turned on him.

"Dean, what's he gonna tell us that we don't already know?"

"I don't know, but we gotta think of something!"

"What if we don't do anything?" Marion whispered. Sam turned his anger to her for a second, before his eyes shined with understanding.

"Godzilla and Mothra." He whispered, as his sister nodded. He turned to the others, who were looking at them in confusion. "Two great armies coming for one thing, right? Demons and angels hate each other. Godzilla versus Mothra. We get them to fight each other."

"So, you want to bring them both _here_?" Ruby asked.

"Ideally, just Uriel and... Al-Alistair." Marion struggled to get the last word out. "But, yeah. _You_ can get Alistair here. Promise him Anna, tell him you just want safe passage out of this mess for you and... and my brothers."

"You want me to go to Alistair _alone_? I know you hate me, but..."

"Bitch, this is the best way to deal with this. If it makes you feel any better, I'll bait the angels."

"Hey. No need for that." Sam said, looking at his sister.

"Sorry. I'm... not sorry to her, but... Let's take a few hours, I'll get some sleep, when I wake up, I'll go somewhere and... pray to Uriel." Marion said, dropping herself to the floor and closing her eyes.

"And, I guess, I'll go start getting mentally ready for a tet-a-tet with Alistair." Ruby said, stalking away.

********************

Marion was shaken awake at about 6 am. Dean was leaning over her. "Ruby's gone. Bonus, though, you don't have to call to Junkless. He visited me, in my dreams. They'll be here soon."

"How'd that work? How'd you manage to sell us out without-"

"-compromising my status as an ornery pain in their asses? They did that for me. Uriel threatened Sam. Of course, I'd give up Anna to save Sammy."

"Well, at least Ruby's already gone. Maybe he'll kill her."

"That's not... you know, she isn't that bad."

"No good demons, Dean. No good demons." Marion said, sitting up.

"I don't know. She seems like she's making the effort to-"

"Her effort is meaningless. Cr-" She sighed as she caught herself. "Fergus put a lot of effort in, too. 'Cause he wanted something from me. We just gotta figure out what Ruby wants from Sam. So, how long til we get this on the road?"

"Couple hours. Hopefully, they'll be here, soon."

"I don't know, guys. Where's Ruby?" Sam asked as Dean pulled out his flask and took a drink.

"Hey, she's your Hell buddy."

"Little early for that, isn't it?" Anna asked, eyeing the flask.

"It's 2 am somewhere."

"You okay?" Anna asked, softly.

"Yeah, of course." Marion smirked at Dean's worried act, but as the barn doors opened and Castiel and Uriel walked in, she dropped her face into her own worried mask. The four of them gathered in the middle of the barn, Winchesters standing protectively in front of the redhead.

"Hello, Anna." Castiel said, his face conflicted. "It's good to see you."

"How? How did you find us?" Sam demanded. Castiel looked at Dean, who looked down in shame. "Dean?"

"I'm sorry." He whispered to Anna.

"Why?" Marion and Sam shouted.

"Because they gave him a choice." Anna turned to Sam. "They either kill me... or kill you. I know how their minds work."

Castiel looked down, sadly, unable to bring himself to look at Anna or the Winchesters, who were all huffing with faux anger. Anna turned to Dean, bringing her lips to his for a goodbye kiss. "You did the best you could. I forgive you." She whispered to Dean, before turning and stepping toward the angels. "Okay. No more tricks. No more running. I'm ready."

"I'm sorry." Castiel's words were stilted, like he'd never said them before.

"No. You're not. Not really. You don't know the feeling." Anna spat back.

"Still, we have a history. It's just-"

"Orders are orders. I know. Just make it quick." Anna demanded.

"Don't you touch a hair on that pour girl's head." Marion closed her eyes at the voice of Alistair behind them. They all turned and looked at Alistair, Ruby and two demons holding the bleeding one up.

The Winchesters pulled Anna out of the way as Uriel stepped toward Alistair. Ruby was thrown to the other side of the barn. "How dare you come in this room... you pussing sore?"

"Name-calling. That hurt my feelings..." Alistair took his own steps forward. "... you sanctimonious, fanatical prick."

"Turn around and walk away now." Cas ordered.

"Sure. Just give us the girl. We'll make sure she gets punished good and proper."

"You know who we are and what we will do." Castiel stepped to Uriel's side. "I won't say it again. Leave now... or we lay you to waste."

"Think I'll take my chances."

An uncomfortable silence filled the barn as the angels and demons both tried to see who'd make the first move. * _Someone draw first blood, already._ * Marion thought, her body shaking a bit, out of her control. Uriel went first, attacking a long-haired demon in a black leather jacket. The other hench-demon attacked Uriel from behind, while Castiel went to work on the Nazi, punching him repeatedly before laying his hands upon him to smite him. Marion's eyes went wide as it failed.

"Sorry, kiddo. Why don't you go run to Daddy?" Alistair teased, before tossing Cas to the ground and getting on top of him. He wrapped his hands around Cas' throat and started to chant. "Potestas inferna, me confirma." Marion grabbed a crowbar and handed it to Dean, who rushed to the angel's rescue, bashing it into the demon's head. "Potestas inferna, me confirma. Potestas inferna, me confirma!"

Alistair stood, stumbling backward a little. His hand went to his head. "Dean, Dean, Dean. I am so disappointed. You had such promise."

Marion dropped to Castiel's side as Alistair raised his hand and her brothers hit the floor in pain. "He's got the power of Hell. All the power of Hell, if you believe his Latin." She whispered.

"I thought you were leaving your brothers." Castiel whispered, still laid out on the floor.

"I lied." She said, looking up in time to see Anna throw a glass vial on the ground. It exploded into blue-white energy and entered her mouth like demon smoke. "I'm glad I was here for this."

"Shut your eyes." Anna said, struggling against her new power to stand. "Shut your eyes! Shut your eyes!" A bright light erupted from her, Marion looking away, but not closing her eyes as her brothers and Ruby did.

Castiel stood, staring at the place Anna had been standing. He extended his arm, without looking, and grabbed Marion's hand, pulling her up. Dean picked up the Kurdish knife and walked toward the angels and his sister. "Well, what are you guys waiting for? Go get Anna. Unless, of course, you're scared." He taunted.

Uriel lurched forward. "This isn't over." Cas grabbed his arm.

"Oh, it looks over to me, Junkless." Dean glared at him until the angels disappeared. The Winchesters let out a collective sigh of relief as Ruby limped over to them.

"You okay?" Sam asked, rubbing at the back of his head.

"Not so much."

"What took you so long to get here?" Dean asked.

"Sorry I'm late with the demon delivery. I was only being tortured."

"Gotta hand it to ya nerds. Bringing 'em all together all at once- angels and demons. It was a damn good plan."

Marion shrugged and rolled her shoulders back. "It's whatever."

"Yeah, well, when you got Godzilla and Mothra on your ass, best to get out of their way and let them fight."

"Yeah, now you're just bragging."

"So, I guess she's some big-time angel now, huh? She must be happy... wherever she is." Sam mused.

"I doubt it." Dean added.

"Remember what she went through to get that Grace out of her." Marion said, walking toward the barn doors.

*****************

Once they'd made it a couple hundred miles away, Dean pulled the Impala over onto a side road and the siblings got out. Dean handed them each a beer, leaning against the side of the car as Marion and Sam hopped up onto the hood. "I can't believe we made it out of there."

"Again." Sam said, happily, holding out his beer bottle. The twins both clinked their bottles against his and they all took a drink.

There was a moment of silence before Dean took a breath and said, "I know you heard him."

"Who?" Sam asked, but Marion just hung her head and closed her eyes.

"Alistair. What he said... about how I had promise."

"I heard him." Sam confirmed.

"You're not curious?"

"Dean, I'm damn curious." Sam said, looking at the back of his brother's head. "But you're not talking about Hell, and I'm not pushing."

Marion looked at her feet, hanging off the hood of the Impala. "I don't wanna know." She whispered.

"Really?" Sam turned to her, his eyebrows scrunching together.

"Probably _need_ to know. But I don't want it. I mean, Alistair is the embodiment of my nightmares. He, legit, terrifies me. He strapped me down and cut me to my marrow, left scars on me that I will _never_ be rid of- and he liked you." She twisted her head to look past Sam to the back of her twin's head. "He liked you, Dean, and I am full of dread at what that might mean, because I _know_ what Alistair likes."

"Sam, it wasn't four months, you know."

"Yeah?"

"It was only four months up here, but for me, down there... Mare knows, time's different. It was more like 40 years."

"Oh, my god. I forgot." Sam whispered.

"They, uh... they sliced and carved and tore at me in ways that you..." Dean shook his head. "Until there was nothing left. And then, suddenly... I would be whole again... like magic... just so they could start in all over. And Alistair... at the end of every day... every one... he would come over and he would make me an offer... to take me off the rack... if I put souls on... if I started the torturing."

A tear fell from Marion's eye as she slowly slid off the hood. "And every day, I told him to stick it where the sun shines. For 30 years, I told him. But then I couldn't do it anymore, Sammy. I couldn't. And I got off that rack. God help me, I got right off it, and I started ripping them apart. I lost count of how many souls. The-- the things that I did to them." 

"Dean..." Sam cleared his throat, rubbing at his eyes. "Dean, look, you held out for 30 years. That's longer than anyone would have."

Tears ran down Dean's face. "How I feel... this... inside me... I wish I couldn't feel anything, Sammy. I wish I couldn't feel a damn thing."

Marion dropped her bottle on the gravel and backed away from the front of the car. Sam twisted to look at her, but Dean knew what was happening without looking. There was a reason he'd only been addressing their brother. "Marion, what are you doing?"

She shook her head. "I... the things I... I went through. The _centuries_ of torture I endured..." Tears rolled down her cheeks as she focused her eyes on her twin. "He couldn't even... I... fuck, I can't even think about...What he did to me, what _you_ did to _them_. How could you... HOW COULD YOU?!" She screamed.

Sam dropped down from the hood as Marion opened the back door, grabbing her duffel from the floorboard. "What are you doing?"

She slammed the door and started walking away. "Mercury!" She yelled over her shoulder.

Sam ran after her. "Wait. Come on, you can't just run." He stepped in front of her, a human wall.

"You don't know what I went through in Hell. You don't know what Alistair did to me. I would not be human if I didn't run from the knowledge that my _twin brother_ was his torture apprentice! So, mercury, mercury, mercury." She said, maneuvering around him.

"At least tell me where you're going."

"Where do I always go when shit gets hard?"

Sam nodded. "We'll stay away from Bobby's."


	17. How Many Angels Can Dance

Marion's phone rang almost 2 days later. She dug it out of the duffel bag on her lap and answered it. "Hey, Bobby."

"Just got an inneresting call from Sam. He wanted to know how you were doing an' how long it took you to get to my place."

"I shoulda-"

"I got yer back, of course. A little heads up, next time, girl."

Marion looked around the Greyhound bus, needing to confirm that there were no angels or demons or Winchesters on the bus with her. "Thanks, Bobby. It's been a hard few days, must've slipped my mind to call you. "

"You gonna tell me what went down? Last I heard, there were angels and demons chasin' after a cute young woman and you guys were holed up in my panic room."

"I can't... I'm not somewhere that I can get into that, really, Bobby. Ask Sam what happened. He'll tell you. Tell him I'm not talking but you're worried about me. He'll explain."

"You okay, though?"

Marion looked at her lap. "Not at all, but... I will be."

"Just needed time away from yer brothers or..."

"I'm... taking some time. Full stop."

"You gonna tell me where?"

She took a deep breath. "Back to New Orleans. No angel bullshit there, and the voduns to keep the Apocalypse at bay. I can relax. You know, I haven't been to the gym since Dean got back? I need some 'me' time."

"Good. You know I'm here if you need some family time."

"I know. You're always there for me."

"Damn straight. Get some rest, girl. You sound exhausted."

"Yes sir."

***********************************

Marion didn't answer when Sam called and Dean never tried, but eventually emails started coming in.

_Hey. I know you aren't with Bobby. That's okay. I understand you need your space. I hope you don't mind, but I'm going to send you updates on what Dean and I are doing. I know you can't be here, but I want you to know we're thinking of you. Dean is, too, you know? He misses you. I see him looking in the rearview sometimes, hoping to catch you there, then he gets that sad look on his face._

_We did a haunting that wasn't a couple weeks ago. Presented as a run of the mill spirit, but was actually two feral kids living in the walls of this farmhouse. Twins; a boy and a girl. That hit Dean pretty hard. He drank himself to blackout point for a couple days after that, then we went to Iowa. Magic Week. I had a lot of fun, even though there was an evil man-witch killing younger illusionists for their youth and their marquees. We're headed to Fairfax, Indiana now. You remember Fairfax, right? Truman High. You and Dean were Seniors. It was the greatest high school we went to. Anyway, I think there might be a case there. Girl killed a classmate, claims not to know why she did it. Possession of some sort, I think. I'll let you know when we move on._

_Love, Sam._

"Fairfax. That's where you got your first boyfriend?" Castiel asked, appearing next to her motel room bed. 

"Yeah. Mike. Crowley called him a distraction. Disemboweled the poor kid." Marion looked up at the angel. "This is getting to be a routine with you, Castiel. You keep showing up when I'm alone, like this, people are gonna talk."

"If you're alone, who will talk?" 

Marion smiled and shut her laptop. Maybe she'd respond to that email later. "Why do you keep coming to me, Cas?"

"Your brothers aren't receptive. Neither are mine. When I get tired of arguing with mine or observing yours argue, I... enjoy the quiet of your space."

Marion smiled. "I don't know how to respond... but that feels like the most sincere thing anyone's ever said to me." She took a deep breath and put the laptop on the bed next to her, kicking her legs over the side of the bed. "So, my brothers are arguing? I thought they were  _better_ without me."

"What gave you that idea?"

Marion looked up at him, confused. It was such a long-held belief that she couldn't pinpoint the exact origin. "Uh... it's just always been Dean and Sam. I've been their third wheel since... since we were, like, 12."

"I was under the impression that twins were more con-"

"Usually, yeah." She interrupted, standing and walking to the mini kitchen to grab a beer from the mini fridge. "But our father hated me and Dean worshiped _him_ so... when Dad started treating me like I was a parasite, Dean focused on his mission. He became all about Sam. And when Dad bitched about my form or ragged on me for a stupid decision on a hunt or encouraged me to stop studying because there was no point, Dean either agreed or looked the other way. I spent a lot of time with Bobby during the years before I made my deal and Dean and I drifted."

She twisted the cap off her beer and took several deep chugs. "After I started working for Crowley and Lilith, I went back to hanging with them, hunting with them, schooling with them. I would sneak out and mark people, then come back to whatever motel and study my ass off to make sure I graduated. Dean was okay with a GED but I didn't want equivalency. I wanted that rolled up piece of parchment with nothing on the inside. Dean didn't understand." She took another chug of beer. "When Sammy went to Stanford, I thought it was an opportunity for me and Dean to connect again, but he'd gotten so used to criticizing everything about me, treating me like a burden, that I was... an unwanted attachment. Granted, things did get a little better between us after Dad started sending us on hunts without him, but then he disappeared and Dean insisted that we needed Sam. He just wanted his Sammy back. Because things are better when it's Sam and Dean." She brought it back around to the original thought.

"Maybe Dean just needs to be reminded of the uterine connection you forged. Dean and... Pony." 

"I doubt that will fix us, Cas. I'm not Pony anymore. The only guy who still calls me that got left in the woods in a Devil's Trap. Dean barely thinks of me as more than an extra set of hands... he doesn't understand what I had with Fergus and he counts it as evidence of my weakness. He thinks I'm a liability and always will."

"Disappointing. You and Dean could work together to stop Lilith. With your strength and his predetermined destiny..."

"I'm staying as far away from Lilith as possible. It's part of why I'm here, under vodun protection."

"Vodun?"

"The owners and manager at this Extended Stay are practitioners of vodun, voodoo, whatever you want to call it. I met them when I was down here with Dean. We thought they were cursing folks but they were protecting them. It was another vodun priestess trying to frame them so Dean and I would take them out. It backfired but I ended up with some good contacts down here. They've got me warded from everything... except you."

"Except me?"

"I like when you visit. We had a rocky start; you called me a whore, but I think we've gotten... past that."

"I know you are not a whore. I feel you are very complimentary to Dean and I like you both." Castiel said, awkwardly.

Marion smiled at him. "So, what are my brothers arguing about?"

"They're arguing about moving on from Fairfax. They've finished the job, but Sam is not ready to abandon his nostalgia and leave town, yet."

"Well, that's a stupid thing for them to be arguing about."

"Perhaps you should let them know that."

"No. Thanks for trying, Cas, but... I'm not ready to be around... You know what he did down there, don't you?" Castiel nodded. "I need time to... there's this disgust I feel when I think about Dean, now. Not anger, really, but... confusion and hurt and betrayal. He lied. He... doesn't know how well I know him. He doesn't know that I know he liked it."

Castiel tilted his head at her in that confused look, but she saw a flicker of recognition in his eyes. "Alistair said he had promise. Off the cuff, that seems like a generic 'You were good at cutting' compliment, but if you knew Alistair... like  _I_ know Alistair... after being tortured by him for years. Alistair is a sadist. Well and truly, the only _textbook_ sadist I have ever met. He enjoys causing pain. It's not a distraction or something he _has_ to do. He likes it. It's his raison d'être. Dean spent those 10 years causing pain to others and Alistair saw a bit of himself in my brother. He saw that promise of sadism. And I can't un-know that. Maybe, one day, I'll be able look at him without seeing the demon who took everything from me, but for now, I'll stay in Louisiana."

Cas disappeared so she sighed and grabbed another beer. She placed both bottles on her bedside table and sat on the bed, opening the laptop and hitting 'reply' on the email. 

_**Fairfax has nothing for you, anymore, little brother. Say goodbye to that teacher you creamed over when you were a Freshman and get out of Dodge. Check your media. Might be something worth your time back in Iowa. Bedford, maybe.** _

She shut the laptop and lied down on the bed. "I'm too old for this shit."

*****************

_So, a siren. That's what you sent us after, a freaking siren. It got to me and Dean, had us trying to kill each other. Bobby stopped us. When I saw him, I was sort of hoping you'd be with him. Hoping you'd come back to us. Something tells me you'd have figured out Nick wasn't a real FBI agent a long time before we got ensnared by him. I think we take for granted the extra pair of eyes and the extra IQ points you provide. We miss you. We need you. What can we do to get you back?_

**_I'm sorry, Sam. I can't, yet. I'm still not ready. Siren? That's awesome. It came to you as a man? That's weird. I would have expected a nerdy brunette a la slutty librarian for you and a busty blond for Dean. Why a man?  
_ **

_Dean doesn't need a busty woman, apparently. He can get any kind of woman he wants. He wanted a little brother who looked up to him. We said some things, under Nick's influence, that we totally meant and that's causing a bit of tension. I just got off the phone with Bobby, though, we have a new case in Greybull, Wyoming. People are cheating death, so that's something better for us to focus on. Let you know how that works out._

**_Be careful. Messing with death means messing with Reapers and we know how temperamental their ilk can be.  
_ **

_Are we ever anything but careful? Don't answer that. Dean wanted you to know that he had that Christmas dream again, whatever the hell that means. Dean thought it was significant enough to tell me to tell you. I'll email when we get done in Wyoming.  
_

_Marion. You need to call me. It's important. Please. It's about Wyoming... and Pam and Alistair and the angels. Please, call.  
_

Marion had a pit in her stomach as she dialed her brother's number. "What happened?"

"Uh, it's kinda... Mare, I-" Panic filled Sam's voice.

"Calm down, Sam. What happened in Wyoming?"

"It was Alistair, trapping Reapers. That's why nobody was dying. It was another seal, sacrifice Reapers. We brought Pamela in to put us in the astral realm so we could figure out what was going on with the Reapers, and Alistair sent a demon to the motel where Pam was looking over us. She..."

"Pam's dead." Marion said, solemnly. "Damn it! Damn it! And Alistair?"

"The angels have him. But, they can't seem to get any information out of him, and apparently angels are dying so they just came and stole Dean." She could feel this panic through the phone.

"They took Dean... to get information out of Alistair? Through... torture?" 

"Yes. It's been a few hours, now. I... found a way to find him, but... there's no way for you to get to Shoshoni in time, is there? Unless you're... closer than I think?"

"I'm pretty far, Sam. But... I'll find a way there. 'Shoshoni', you said?"

"Yeah. I'll let you know when I find him."

Marion turned off her phone and rubbed her hand down her face, paying special attention to rub both eyes. "Castiel. I need you here, please."

A small whoosh heralded the arrival of the angel. "I can't be here long."

"You're busy. I know. I called Sam." Castiel looked down. "I understand the need. Your brothers and sisters are dying. I didn't call you here to tell you to stop this or plead for Dean's soul but I... I need to be there for him. He's going to need someone to bring him back to himself. You have to take me there. I promise I won't interrupt him."

Castiel looked up, focusing on her eyes. He nodded once, before reaching out to put a hand on her shoulder. They were suddenly in an old warehouse. Screaming hit her ears, immediately. She flinched, but didn't move, looking at a metal table. "Anna was here?" She whispered.

"You can tell that?"

"Grace leaves a temporary mark, a distinct outline for different angels. I can't explain it, but I know yours and I know Anna's. Hers got blasted into my eyes in that barn."

"And I've been visiting you."

"Damn near daily for 3 months. Even when you think I don't know."

"I enjoy your company."

"I know. I know you do." She turned to the swinging doors that had been holding back the screams. "Is it a little too quiet to you?"

Castiel looked toward the doors. Marion took several steps in that direction, her eyes going through the window. Fear filled her as she saw Dean being held up by his throat against a large iron star. "Cas." She whispered.

Castiel pulled Ruby's knife and ran into the room. Marion followed.

The fight was short. She'd been in longer rows with John. But as she lied protectively over her unconscious twin, ready to take any blows Alistair might rain down upon him, she felt this might be the worst fight she'd been in. She wasn't even fighting, her angel was, but this was it. This was worse than Samhain, worse than all the fights with John, worse than Lilith. Marion watched as Alistair slammed Castiel into a pole, impaling him on a short metal pipe.

"Like roaches, you celestials. I really wish I knew how to kill you. But all I can do is send you back to Heaven." Alistair said, his hand wrapped around Cas' throat. "Omnipotentis Dei Potestateminvoco. Omnipotentis Dei Potestateminvoco. Omnipotentis Dei Potestateminvoco."

Marion watched as the blue light that was Castiel started to pull at the edges of his vessel, then out through the mouth and eyes. She closed her eyes, tightly, praying to stop time, to stop Alistair, to bring Uriel back, anything. Her prayers were answered by her baby brother... saving the day with his powers. Alistair flew to the wall and Castiel slid to the ground. "Stupid pet tricks." The demon growled.

"Who's murdering the angels?" Sam demanded, his hand raised threateningly. "How are they doing it?"

"You think I'm gonna tell you?" Alistair chuckled.

"Yeah, I do." The demon gagged and his eyes turned white as Sam twisted his hand and clenched his fist. "How are the demons killing angels?"

"I... don't... know!" Alistair ground out, painfully.

"Right." Sam said, not believing as he clenched his fist tightly.

"It's not us. We're _not_ doing it."

"I don't believe you."

"Lilith is not behind this. She wouldn't kill seven angels. Oh, she'd kill a hundred, a thousand."

Sam dropped his arm, breathing heavily as Alistair breathed a relieved sigh followed by several hyperventilating breaths. "Oh, go ahead. Send me back, if you can."

"I'm stronger than that, now." Sam smiled. "Now, I can kill."

Marion sat up from her protective stance and watched Sam's face as he destroyed the demon. _He enjoyed that. He enjoys killing. Or does he enjoy the power? Fuck._ She leaned down and wrapped Dean's arm around her shoulder.

"Mare, how'd you get-" Sam started as he dropped to his knees to help her pick their brother up.

"It doesn't matter. Just get him to the car." She let Sam take the whole of her twin's weight and stepped toward Cas.

"What, you aren't coming?" Sam leaned down to pick Dean up like a bride. 

"I'll catch up. Get Dean to a doctor. Now." She whispered the words but Sam flinched like she was shouting. He nodded and rushed out of the room. Marion placed her hands on Castiel's shoulders. "Are you okay?"

Castiel snapped his fingers, vessel returning to it's pristine state. "I'm fine."

"That's my line, Cas." She let her left hand slide up his neck and ran her fingers through his hair. "You forget that I can see you past your vessel. You're rattled. He almost sent you home. He almost... beat you."

Cas' right hand came up to cover her hand. "This isn't appropriate."

"I just saw you pretty much almost die, Cas." Marion caught the angel's eyes. "That sent some... unexpected emotions through me and I... the idea that I wouldn't be able to see that Grace of yours again, or your vessel's pretty blue eyes. Gods, those eyes get me. I don't care about appropriate, Castiel. I care about you." She said the words like they surprised her, but the quick surge of blue energy said it surprised Castiel more.

"Marion-"

"Look, I know that you probably can't care about me. I'm sure there are rules against that sort of thing, but... I care about you and I hope I never have to see you almost die again." She blinked and looked away, pulling her hands back and clearing her throat. "Will Dean be okay?" She changed the subject as she stepped toward the double door.

"Of course. We can't afford to lose him. Marion." Castiel grabbed her hand as she approached the doors. "There  _are_ rules. I wish there weren't. I would have liked to enjoy more than just your company and the silence of your space."

Marion smiled. "Well, I guess we just go back to you watching me sleep and me pretending I didn't know you were there."

"Are you going back to New Orleans? Do you want me to take you back?" 

Marion shook her head, pulling her hand back from the angel's grasp. "My brothers need me. Both of them. Whatever Sammy's got, it's wrong."

"I'm sure he'd say the same to you, Marion. Just... approach this with caution."

"My abilities didn't come from a demon dropping blood into my mouth, so I think I have the high ground here. But, thanks, Cas." She gave him a final small smile and rushed out of the warehouse. Sam and the Impala were both gone but she wasn't going to ask Cas to bamph her to the hospital. She needed time to analyze what she'd seen and mourn the fact of Heaven's rules robbing her of even a chance with Castiel.

She was washing her hair with shitty motel shampoo when her phone went off. She reached out to the phone sitting on the counter and put it on speaker. "Yeah?" She shouted.

"Dean's in the ICU. Cas says he can't heal him. Nothing to do but wait." Sam's voice could barely be heard over the water.

"Don't worry about him. The angels can't afford to lose him. I'm at the A+ Motel. Room 112. Come get some rest."

"Save me some hot water." Sam hung up and Marion went back to her shower.

***********

Marion let herself be enveloped by one of Sam's shirts while her clothes soaked in the sink and Sam used the hot water she left for him. When he came out of the bathroom, drying out his ear with a towel, she handed him a beer and smiled. "So... Ready to tell me how you got to town before me? Were you already-"

"If I were already in Wyoming, I'd have my bag with me, Sam. I was in New Orleans." She tucked her wet hair behind her ears and set her green eyes on her little brother. "I prayed to Cas. He took me from my motel room to the warehouse."

"You prayed to Cas?" Sam took a drink of his beer.

"You called on Ruby, didn't you? As soon as Dean disappeared, you called that demon bitch. That's why your powers were so strong today. Ruby did something." Sam looked down. Marion shook her head at him. "I know you aren't gonna listen, but... if anyone knows the dangers of trusting a demon, Sammy, it's me. She's warping you."

"She's not warping me-"

"You didn't see your face when you put down Alistair. You liked killing him. You liked _killing_."

"He was a demon. An evil one who tortured you and Dean."

"Horribly. For decades." Marion looked at the bedspread in front of her. "But I didn't enjoy his death like you did, Sam. A necessary evil is one thing, but you _liked_ it."

"So what? I got revenge for what he did. I-"

"Used your powers! I thought you were done with that shit. You said, after that rougaru, you said you were done."

"I was wrong!" Sam sat on the opposite bed and sighed, deeply. "These powers... they're important. I can do things-"

"These powers are not a-a gift, you idiot, and you need to use them with caution, if at all."

"I will! I will use... caution, but... if I hadn't shown up, you and Dean would be dead and Cas would've been sent back to Heaven."

"Dean wouldn't be dead. The angels need him."

"Then, you'd be dead."

"And who would, actually, care?" She mumbled, standing up to check on her clothes. 

"Hey!" Sam jumped up off the bed and blocked her. "What's that supposed to mean?"

Marion looked down. "Dean didn't miss me while I was gone. Neither did you. I mean, things are better when it's just the two of you, right?"

"Are you kidding? I've been emailing-"

"Out of obligation. Not because you actually wanted me to come back. Things are better when-"

"Stop saying that!" Sam cleared his throat and shook his head at her. "It may have been that way when we were younger. You know, it probably was. You were gone a lot back then. You weren't there when I went on my first hunt, when I got my first kiss, Dean was _all_ I had, but now... Dean and I barely get along, Marion, and it's not just Ruby or the powers... we work well together and we love each other, but he doesn't respect me. He doesn't trust me. He treats me like Dad always treated you."

Marion looked down. "No. No, he doesn't."

"Yes, he..."

"Sam, if Dean hasn't grabbed you by the hair and thrown you into a closet, or kicked you in the ribs when you tried to get up, then he is _not_ treating you like Dad treated me." She closed her eyes and put a hand on the bathroom doorknob. "I know you and Dean have been having problems, but do you really think having me around is gonna help anything? Maybe I'll just be another reason for fighting. I mean, Dean has issues with me, too. He doesn't trust me. He hasn't respected me for years. He let me think I had imagined the problems with Dad. I... Sammy, I came back because I knew that Dean would need me. I put away my personal shit, how disgusted I am with what he did, so that I can help him deal with what Heaven wanted of him. Dean doesn't..."

Marion turned her tearful eyes up at her brother. "Dean doesn't sacrifice for me. Ever. Since we were 12 years old, Dean has been all about you. _All_ about you and Dad and hunting monsters. Fergus wasn't the reason I became the black sheep. He's just another thing for Dean to kick me about. Dean doesn't sacrifice for me, but he does for you. Maybe you should remember that."

"And maybe you should remember that he's your twin brother and he loves you. Probably more than he loves me."

"Bullshit! Why do you think I was able to work for Fergus and Lilith for so long? Because he doesn't care!" She slammed her hand down on the doorknob. The pain cleared her mind a bit, so she cleared her throat. "Dean went to Hell for you. He stood up to Dad, for the first time in his life, for _you_. He doesn't care about me, Sammy. He hasn't cared about me for years. Luckily for him, I care about _him_."

"Marion, he cares. I told you, he dreams-"

"That doesn't mean anything. He dreams about me. Cool. I dream about the Easter Bunny on occasion, but that doesn't mean-"

"Dean's awake." Cas' voice cut through hers and made her, instinctively, pull Sam's shirt further down her legs. "They took the tube from his mouth an hour ago and he woke a few minutes ago."

Marion rubbed at her eyes and pulled away from Sam to check on her clothes. "Thanks, Cas."

"Are you all right, Marion?" Castiel took a step toward the bathroom, concern pulling at his features.

"Yeah. I'm fine, Cas."

"You don't need to use your line with me."

She smiled as she drained the water out of the sink and twisted her clothes to wring the water from them. Neither the angel nor his sister noticed the look of confusion Sam wore. "I know. You could just read my mind if you really wanted." She slung her jeans and tee over the shower curtain bar to dry and turned around, Castiel suddenly appearing right in front of her.

"You've been crying."

"No, I haven't." She was sure no tears had fallen.

"Yes, you have. Your nose is running because your tears are being forced down your nasolacrimal duct. You've been crying inside." He brought his hand up and caressed her cheek with his thumb.

"Is- uh, what's going on here?" Sam asked, gesturing at the angel and his sister.

Marion turned away from him as Castiel dropped his hand to his side. "I was attempting to comfort Marion. Was that not obvious?"

"Nothing's going on, Sam. Not ever. There's rules against fraternizing. Against feeling things." She sniffled as she walked over to her bed and sat back down. "Why don't you head back to the hospital, check on Dean? I can't go until my clothes dry, so you go ahead and I'll hit them with that little hairdryer in the bathroom and I'll call you when I'm ready for a pickup."

Sam looked between Marion and the confused-looking angel before nodding and grabbing the keys and his jacket. "Okay. Call when you're ready. Maybe Cas can pop into your place in New Orleans, get your bag for you."

Marion leaned forward, tucking her legs under her and stretching the t-shirt over her knees as Sam walked out. "So... How is he?"

"Dean?" She nodded. "He's not well. Alistair told him... told him that he was the one who broke the first seal."

"What?"

"Dean broke the first seal on Lucifer's cage. 'The first seal shall be broken when a righteous man sheds blood in Hell'. When he couldn't take it anymore, when he began to torture souls in Hell, the first seal was broken."

Marion's jaw clenched. "What? I- that's why they asked?"

"Did they ask you?"

"Just a few times. Alistair asked a couple times. It was after he'd already started to dissect me, so I was less than receptive. Then Lilith asked once and Azazel twice because they were having problems with Dad cooperating. They didn't ask much." She looked down. "They asked Dad every day. They asked Dean every day. Wonder why they didn't stay on me like-"

"They were most likely focused on the wording. You are not a 'Righteous man'."

Marion chuckled, untucking her feet and stretching them out on the bed. "You think it was the 'righteous' part that got them?"

"You are righteous. You are not a man."

"I know, Cas. It was a joke." Castiel nodded and looked around the room. "Hey, um, what Sam said about getting my stuff from New Orleans, can we do that? I don't fancy trying to hunt in one of Sam's shirts, you know?"

Castiel disappeared, then reappeared with a duffel bag. Marion stood, quickly, pulling the duffel to her. "So, Dean didn't deal well with the fact that he started this whole thing... but he'll be okay, right?"

"He _has_ to be. The righteous man who starts it is the only one who can end it. Right now, he says he can't end it, but... he _has_ to."

"He told you he can't do it?"

"He said it's 'too big'."

Marion nodded. "So, what are you going to do about that?"

"I have to let the archangels know. About Dean, about Uriel..."

" _What_ about Uriel?" She pulled out a tank top and a pair of jeans.

"He was in league with Lucifer. He was actively sabotaging our efforts to stop Lilith. He was starting an army out of our garrison to raise Lucifer. Anna killed him."

"Oh. Wow. That's... I never liked him." She sighed and walked toward the bathroom. "Hey, can you take me to the hospital after I get dressed? I know you have to get back to Heaven and tell the big bosses about Uriel but... I mean, do you have time?"

There was no response as she got dressed. "Cas?" She opened the door and looked out across the room. The angel was gone. "Great. Guess I'll call Sam in a few."


	18. 9 to 5

The alarm went off at 4:30 and Marion sat up, quickly hitting snooze and getting out of her full-size bed. She made the bed quickly and headed into the next room over, turning on the light and overhead fan. She tied her running shoes and hopped onto her treadmill. She ran her 3 miles and hopped off, running to her shower. By 5:30 she was pulling her hair into a tight bun. She spent half an hour perfecting her makeup, then moved on to her kitchen. An egg-white spinach omelet and a brown-sugar oatmeal with apple slices and then she was out the door. She stopped on the way to work and ordered 2 coffees, getting back in her car and driving to the skyscraper she spent her days at. She arrived at the building at 7:10 and ran for the elevator. She made it to her desk at 7:17 and set her coffee on her left and the other coffee on the right side of her. She had just finished logging onto her computer when the elevator dinged and a tall man in a grey suit and red tie walked out, black leather briefcase in his hand. She smiled and stood. "Mr. Smith! Good morning. Venti Caffe Latte with coconut milk." She handed the right-hand coffee over the desk to the man with the slicked-back hair.

He smiled as he took the coffee from her. "You know, I'm supposed to be watching my calories, Miss Remington."

"Oh, please. You definitely do _not_ need to be watching your weight. Look at you."

"Are you flirting with me, Marion?"

"Absolutely not, sir. Just calling it as I see it, and I see no reason for you to diet."

"You're a sweetheart. Thanks for the coffee."

"Only 180 calories, sir." She smiled and sat back down, nursing her Venti Full-fat Caramel Macchiato as she watched him sashay down the hallway to his office. She loved that man. Not the way the other women at Sandover did; no, she was not attracted to Dean Smith, but she did feel like it was somehow her job to keep his spirits up. It was _her_ job to make sure he was doing _his_. Okay, not really. She was the executive assistant to the entire 22nd floor management, but something about Dean... she couldn't explain the connection, and she was sure that Mr. Smith thought she was head over stylish Sergio Rossi heels for him, but... he was like the brother she never had.

4 hours later, as she was working to order lunch for her and her long-lost brother, her computer stopped working. "No. No." She kicked the CPU tower and growled in anguish as the computer screen turned blue. "Erg!" She stood, looking down the hallway to Mr. Adler's office. She wasn't going to risk it. She dialed down to Tech and waited.

"Tech Support, this is Sam Wesson."

"Hi, this is Miss Remington, up on 22. My computer has frozen."

"Okay. Have you tried turning it off and turning it back on again?"

"Look, I know that you're supposed to ask that and you've got a whole script you're supposed to say, but I'm not _allowed_ to make any motions to fix this myself, so will you please come up here for me? _Please_?"

"You're not a-, uh, okay. I will be up there in the next 15 minutes."

"Thank you, so much!" 10 minutes later, a wide beanpole in a yellow shirt walked off the elevator. Marion stared at him for a minute after he walked up. He looked so familiar. "Do I know you?"

"Don't think so. Miss Remington, right?"

"Right. Maybe you just remind me of one of my bosses." She shook her head at herself and pushed her rolling desk chair out of the way. Her screen was still blue.

"So, uh, you said you weren't allowed to try to fix this yourself?" Sam Wesson sat in the rolling chair, which was much too small for his frame. "Couldn't even turn it off to dispel the blue screen?"

"Nope. I mean, I definitely could have taken care of this and I feel awful that you had to come all the way up here, but Mr. Adler, the big boss, he says that we pay Tech Support for a reason and I should just let a _man_ do a _man_ 's job."

Sam swiveled the chair around the look at her. "Well, that's sexist."

"Yeah. It's the same speech I got a few weeks ago when he walked in on me fielding a sales call for one of the other managers. I mean, the man was sick. He'd been in and out of the loo all day. What kind of person would I be to let a big client get away just because I'm not technically supposed to take sales calls? I landed 'em. Adler should've been thanking me and oh, my god, I shouldn't be bothering you with my rant."

He smiled. "What would you have done if it were you fixing your PC?"

"Well, my hardware should be fine. They make sure we have new equipment every year on 22, so it's probably a software issue. Turn it off, turn it back on. Then run antivirus just to check, then a registry cleaner and hope for the best."

"You have a registry cleaner on your computer? Most people don't even..."

"Don't let the Dolce & Gabbana suit throw you. I'm not just a pretty face."

He turned off the computer and turned it back on before running it through the steps she suggested. "You're good. Computer's running much better than before. Hey, you know, you'd probably make more money hourly downstairs doing IT."

"True, but... I don't know." She looked down the hall to 2208. "Mr. Smith, he needs me. Even if all of the rest of these managers don't, he does. I mean, he puts up this facade of being this super-confident worldly guy, but really he's this mushy ball of bad self-esteem and doubt. If I weren't here every morning with a latte and a smile, I don't know what he'd do."

"Wow. Loyalty. That's a rare trait in this building."

"It's a rare trait in this life." She took her seat back with a smile as Sam stood. "I like to be better than everyone else. Better shoes, better clothes, better personality. Just all around better."

"Well, tone down the narcissism. People don't like to hear how someone's better than them. Even if it's true."

Marion logged back onto her computer as Sam headed for the elevator. "You know, I usually act pretty dang humble, but for some reason I knew you weren't going to be offended."

"I'm IT. I'm impressed by anyone who doesn't have to be walked through the process of shutting down their computer. Let me know if you have any other problems, okay?"

"Can do, Sammy."

"Sammy?" The man's eyebrows raised, dramatically.

Marion shook her head. "I don't know. Just felt right. You know?"

"Okay." He said, skeptically. "You have a good day, Mare."

Something about being called 'Mare' felt more right than than 'Miss Remington'.

********************************

That night Marion fell asleep with no issues. No sleeping pill was required to put her down.

"You _know_ that you're being an idiot, right?" A rough accent asked.

"Why?" She asked. She could see him in her peripheral vision on her left side, but some sort of dream logic told her he'd disappear if she turned flush with him. "What am I doing wrong?"

"You don't believe this, Pony. You want to, but you don't. These cracks aren't as big as the ones in the djinn's fantasy but the cracks are still there. This isn't real."

"Don't question it, Marion." A man in a tan trench coat appeared in her view on her right. She couldn't turn to look at him, either. "We all must learn to do our jobs without distraction. That's what this is about. You can't question-"

"Pony, this is wrong. You can feel it in your bones, sweetheart. Those boys at work. One of 'em called you 'Mare'. Did you even tell him you're called 'Marion'? And that connection you feel to them. You don't just want them to succeed or feel good, you _love_ them. You love those boys like a sister. Like a big sister."

"Dean and Sam." She whispered.

"That's right. Your little brothers."

"Dean was born 6 minutes before me." Marion whispered, suddenly remembering her twin.

"But you were in Hell longer, and you've always been more mature."

"I _was_ in Hell." Marion brought her hand to her eyes, covering them and putting hard pressure on them. "Why are you doing this to me? Why can't you just let me enjoy this, Crowley?"

"I'm you, pet. When have we ever just let a thing go?"

"Marion, don't listen to him. You don't want to remember. You want to have the designer outfits and the nice apartment. You like your job."

She turned to her right side, only slightly surprised that the angel didn't disappear. "Castiel. What are you doing here?"

"I'm... not supposed to be. I saw you were... realizing. Seeing the truth."

"Cas." She sat up and wrapped her arm around his shoulders. "What is going on?"

"I can't explain it, but, it'd be better for everyone if you don't make a mess of it."

"I just want to understand. Please." Castiel shook his head, silently refusing to satisfy her curiosity, so she swung her leg over his lap, straddling him and getting his attention, without touching him. He looked up at her with wide eyes. "Cas. Don't hold out on me. This is a dream. I might not even remember this when I wake up. Why won't you-"

Castiel grabbed her shoulders and pulled her down into his lap. "You _are_ dreaming. But I hope you don't forget. I want you to remember this." He pushed his lips into hers, forcefully enough that it hurt and ground his groin upwards into hers, pulling moans from her. His lips were red when he pulled back. "Dean has to go through this. We need him to stop Lucifer's ascension. Don't say anything to either of your brothers, Marion."

"Wha... You kissed me. You know how to kiss?"

"I've watched humans for thousands of years. I know a lot." He stood, dropping her to her bed. "Don't get in the way of this. Take a step back and realize that the wild card will have a place only if your brother doesn't do his job. It's better if he does."

Marion woke at 4:29, just before her alarm went off and looked around the room. This was fake. All of it. And she'd been kissed by an angel. She wasn't sure which part surprised her more. She hit the alarm and sighed. She didn't feel like running, or making a healthy breakfast or grabbing a coffee or going to work at Sandover. What was the point? 

She pulled herself out of bed and rifled through the closet. Maybe she couple keep some of the clothes, put it in storage. She sighed, grabbing a blue dress from its padded hanger, and went to take a shower. She was going to get the most out of the good life while she had it.


	19. Read At Your Own Risk

"Can I get the Lumberjack? Oh, and can I have bacon  _and_ sausage with that? I know there's an up-charge." Marion took a sip of her coffee as the waitress walked away. She shook her head as the iPhone in her pocket rang. "Mr. Adler."

"You aren't at your desk, Miss Remington. Should I assume that there is a call-out that HR just didn't take down?"

"No, sir. Actually, I'm not coming back. You need to get someone to fill my place, because I quit."

"You quit? What do you mean? You aren't even working out a notice?"

"No. I don't belong there and I won't be returning. Thank you, Mr. Adler." She ended the call and went back to her coffee, but the diner door opened and Adler walked in, a bright blue-white light pushing at the edges of him. He sat down across from her and looked over her with a stern look. "Wow. You are bright. Like, 'Anna' bright. Why didn't I notice that yesterday?"

"Because you were still under yesterday. Why aren't you under today?"

Marion smirked behind her coffee mug. "Castiel reports to you, doesn't he? He didn't tell you that I was voted 'Winchester Most Likely To See Through Magical Bullshit'? Between my years alive and my years in Hell, I've grown very adept at seeing things for what they really are. That's why I can see  _you._  So, what are you called? Not 'Adler', I'm sure."

"Zachariah."

"Okay, Zachariah, correct me if I'm wrong but this is a lesson, right? Castiel's been reporting on us and you set up this little manipulation to save us from our perceived faults. Set us on the path Heaven has destined us for." Zachariah said nothing so Marion set her mug down and smiled. "Luckily, I'm perceptive and I picked up on my lesson pretty quick. 'Get out of the way and let the men-folk do their work'. I mean, it's a misogynistic message but an effective one, since I'm here and not at Sandover."

"You aren't going to tell your brothers?"

"They'd never believe me. Thank you, sweetie." Marion smiled up at the waitress as she dropped her plates off and walked away. She shoved a sausage into her mouth and smiled at Zachariah. "And I'm not willing to make myself look crazy just to put a wrench in your works, Zach. I, actually, support a lot of what you guys do. I'm sure you have set this up to effectively bring Dean out of his funk and I support that, too, so I have no plans to stop this. No, I'm gonna take Marion Remington's credit card and get some much needed R&R."

"Weren't you just down in New Orleans, doing just that?"

"You think a hunter can rest easy in the city of Voodoo and restless spirits? More hauntings in N'awlins than cars. No, I left my brothers and worked that city while they fucked around with illusionists and strippers. I think I'm gonna spend some time with my own illusionists and strippers... Or just strippers. I haven't decided. You got nothing to fear from me, sir. Just... have my brothers hit me up when you're done."

"Huh. Who would've thought _you_ would be the most reasonable Winchester."

"Well, I could blame it on the age, but I've always been the most reasonable." She cut into her eggs and cleared her throat. "Seriously. Do what you have to in order to get my brother back. If you can fix the torturing sadist thing, too, while you're at it, that would be peachy." She looked up and the angel was gone. She shrugged and continued to eat.

*****************

Three days later, as she was enjoying a pedicure, her phone rang. "Mr. Smith, what a surprise!"

"Oh, stuff that shit. Where are you?" 

"Well, Grumpy, I'm halfway through my third mimosa with Sun-Yi working on my toes."

"You're getting a pedicure? Sam and I have been playing 'Amnesiac Ghost-hunt' and you're getting your toes done?"

"Oh, yeah. How'd that go, by the way? You must be itching for a cheeseburger."

"Oh, my god! So much. So... Why did you leave? Zachariah said you quit."

"Oh, I saw through Zachariah's little glamour days ago. I figured there was a good reason for the lesson, so I took my credit card for a vacation. Got my hair dyed, nails did. Spent last night making the gentlemen at Hunkmania very happy."

"First, ew. Second, why the hell didn't you try to wake us up?"

"A: I'm not going to go against those guys solo. B: They probably had real reasons for what they set up. C: Did it work? Are you back on the horse?"

"Yeah. All saddled up and ready to get the Hell out of this damn city."

"I'll meet you at your place, Mr. Smith."

"You better stop callin' me that, Mare, or I'm gonna kick your ass."

*****************

Sam had found a 'thin, maybe a ghost, I don't know' death in the paper and the boys had left to go talk to the owner of the comic book store in the building while Marion researched the town and building. She'd found an overwhelming amount of nothing and was just opening a beer when her brothers walked into the motel room with a box of books.

"What's this?" 

"Something more important than a ghost." Sam dropped the books on the bed. "These are the 'Supernatural' books. A series about two brothers fighting monsters."

"So? I'm sure there are plenty of books about siblings fighting evil." Marion took a drink of her beer and picked up a book titled 'Bugs'.

"Yeah, these books are about a pair of brothers named Dean and Sam who start out the series with their sister, Marion, trying to track down their father who disappeared while investigating a god-damned Woman in White in Jericho, California. Dad's not in Jericho, but they end the ghost and head back to Stanford where Sam's girlfriend ends up burning on the ceiling. Ringing bells?" Dean growled.

"Wow. That's... These are real books? Bees?"

"Yes, bees and yes, books." Sam said, pulling out his laptop as Dean picked up a book titled 'Route 666'.

Dean flipped through the book as he lied on the bed, the frown on his face getting deeper and deeper. "This is freakin' insane. How's this guy know all this stuff?"

"You got me." Sam mumbled from the window.

"Everything is in here. I mean everything. From the racist truck to- to me having sex. I'm full-frontal in here guys." Dean stood and crossed the room to look over Sam's shoulder. "How come we haven't heard of them before?"

"They're pretty obscure. I mean, almost zero circulation. Uh, started in '05. The publisher put out a couple dozen before going bankrupt. And, uh, the last one in the main storyline- 'No Rest For The Wicked'... ends with you going to Hell." Sam turned the laptop so that Dean could see it. 

"I reiterate. Freaking insane. What'd you mean 'main storyline'? Were there other books?"

"Just one. It was met with... some harsh criticism from the fans. They didn't like... Marion much." Sam threw a quick glance at his sister, who was deeply engrossed in a book titled 'The Benders'. 

"There's a Marion book?" Dean asked, walking over to the bed and rifling through the paperbacks. He picked up a book with a red-plaid clad brunette with blond roots, smoking a cigarette while reading a book on the hood of the Impala. _ **"**_ _ **Marion never called attention to herself. She thrived in the shadows, even more than other hunters. This book is to bring her into the light."**_ Dean read from the inside cover of a thick paperback titled "Pony's Tale".  
        
"You don't wanna read that." Marion whispered.   
     
"Yeah well, apparently, there's a lot about your life that I still don't know, so I think I do wanna read." Dean made a show of flipping to the first page of chapter 1. " _ **Marion was not supposed to be around. She was never meant to grow old. If God had his way, she would have died long before the family Exodus from Lawrence. When she and Dean were 4 years old, about 8 months before the fire, John took them to the park in town. Dean was full of energy, demanding that John throw him a small football.'**_ I remember this park. Huh. _ **'Marion occupied herself with the slide as the pigskin flew back and forth between the Marine and her twin, unaware that she was being watched. When the slide no longer held her attention, she walked to the swings. Two wooden planks held up with knotted rope so thick that the girl could barely close her tiny hands around it. She kicked, back and forth, just as Mary had taught her the week previous. She'd just begun to get some height when the tinkling notes of 'The Entertainer' floated over the playground. Dean jumped up and down, excitement coursing through his veins. As Dean begged for the sweet concoction that tune promised him, Marion jumped off her swing, suddenly enamored with a yellow and blue butterfly that was zooming around the park. She ran after it, determined to catch it, to examine it, perhaps to crush it in her hand, she wasn't sure. She just ran. She didn't realize how far away she was until she felt asphalt under her shoes. A truck was barreling toward her, a driver behind the wheel who'd stopped after work for several beers. That would have been the end of dear Marion, but Fate intervened in the form of a demon named Fergus. He pulled her back onto the grass and disappeared so quickly she thought she'd**_... _ **imagined him.**_ " Dean shot a look at Marion, who hadn't looked up from her reading choice.  
   

He flipped a few pages ahead. " ** _Fergus was suddenly beside her in the field. Normally, he wouldn't care about shocking someone with his sudden appearance, but he was always careful to appear in her peripheral vision first, never in front of or behind her. The last thing he wanted was to scare the little blond bookworm, but being a demon, it was on his list. She looked up from her book and smiled at the man.  'Good morning, Fergus.' 'Hey, Pony. What's the book today?' She held up her copy of Stephen King's 'Eyes of the Dragon. 'It's a good one. A little wordy for me but then again you are smarter than me.'_**

Wait, how's this guy talk?" Marion shook her head once and looked down at her book. " _ **He**_ _ **sat down next to her. 'So... Do you know what a demon is, Mare?' 'You are.' The nine year old responded, quickly. She was always eager to show Fergus how much she knew. 'That's right, but most demons, they aren't nice like me. Most are mean. And your dad, he's doing a lot of research into who hurt your mum that night.'**_ Ah-ha, he said mum. Is he British?"

"He's a demon. Professional body snatcher. Maybe that vessel was British." Marion responded, trying to hide her nervousness at the thought of her brothers learning more about Crowley than she wanted.

"I'm gonna do him British. _**'T**_ _ **he fights he's going on, this quest... he is getting a lot of attention from some really mean demons. I'm afraid that attention is gonna hurt you.'**_ " Dean's fake accent was horrible, somewhere between Liverpudlian and Cockney." _ **'Are you sure?' She tried not to show her fear, afraid to look childish in front of the centuries-old demon, but he could hear her heart rate jump. 'Not positive, but I'd like to do something to help. You know I'm... borrowing this body from someone, right? You know demons can possess people.' Marion nodded. Fergus gently pulled Marion's face to look into his eyes. 'I can make it where the other demons can never take your body and use it against your Dad. Would you want me to do that? You wouldn't want to be used as a weapon against poor John, would you?' 'No. I would hate that.' 'This might hurt, but it will be worth it, Pony.' 'Okay.' She responded quickly. 'All right. Now, close your eyes. When I tap your hand, I want you to take a deep breath, as deep as you can, okay? I won't lie. It's gonna burn and you're gonna cough, but it won't last.'**_  Are you serious? You went along with this? **_She closed her eyes and he took a deep breath. He let out a small puff of black sulfur-filled smoke that hung in the air in front of her face. He nodded and tapped her hand. Obediently, she breathed in and immediately began to cough as the sulfur burned the inside of her lungs. As the watering in her eyes subsided, she looked up at Fergus and quickly realized that he wasn't the Fergus she was just looking at. His face was twisted, dead. She could see the real Fergus. 'You... look so different.' 'You aren't scared?' The demon was worried. If she stopped wanting his company, he didn't know what he'd do. 'No. You're still you.'"_**

Dean flipped a few pages, made an angry face, then kept flipping. Marion, knowing what he was skipping, jumped up and grabbed the book. "You don't get to retcon this out of my life, anymore, Dean. If you aren't gonna read it, you child, I will." She angrily flipped the pages of the book to chapter 5.

_**'The first time John hit his daughter, she was 8. She mouthed off to him in the front seat of the car about a hunt he had failed to complete and it earned her a swift backhand. He immediately felt guilty about it and hugged her close to him, offering her a chance to drive. The first time John beat Marion, however, was completely unprovoked and occurred when the twins were 12.'**_ " Her hands shook as she tried to focus on the words in front of her.

" _ **'John was coming back from a successful ghoul hunt in New Jersey, one with only 1 civilian casualty. It had been easy, a takedown faster than he ever could have imagined, but even that was not enough to pull the man out of the pit growing in his heart. It was his anniversary, and no hunt could fix that feeling. He crawled into a bottle before he even made it back to the city lines and he was swerving by the time he made it to the motel. The first thing that met his vision when he walked in the door was Marion's hair, the same bright sunshine that her mother's hair had been. Seeing his daughter, who looked so much like his late wife, John filled with rage."**_  Marion cleared her throat and drew a shaking breath.  
  
**_"Marion woke to a bottle smashing into her hip. At first, she thought her father might be possessed, Fergus warned her that might happen one day, but she could see his true face. There was no demon in him except the whiskey. She didn't cry out as John grabbed her by the hair and pulled her off the couch, whispering hateful verses to the locks of platinum, or when he began to whip her with his belt. She was covered in welts by the time the ex-Marine's arm got tired, tears rolling down her face. John, who felt better once he'd put his rage toward an end, then he flopped down on the couch and ordered her to get another bottle of whiskey and the six pack of light beer from the Impala. By the time she made it back, John was passed out. Marion silently prayed that it would be a one-time thing, a result of the alcohol and the date, but that was much too much to ask._**  
  
**_This young woman, who had never even worn lip gloss, had to quickly became an expert in concealer and foundation. Layers of powders from pallets marked 'nude'. Dark lip stains to hide her busted lips. She stole her first box of brunette hair dye from a pharmacy shelf and rid herself of the offending hair color, hoping that would be enough, but John had found his punching bag. A call to a Bobby would get her to safety for short bursts, but that would only last so long as John stayed consistently drunk. Unfortunately, with sobriety came his sense of responsibility and his desire to be a better father, but the sobriety never lasted more than two weeks.'_**  
      
"You want to read about my life, Dean, you don't skip the hard parts." She spat as her brothers looked at their feet. "You wanna read about Bobby training me to defend against Dad? Or how about Fergus taking the head off a vamp that found me on a hunt Dad forgot he took me on? Or this... How about when I kissed away my life? The time Fergus' hound attacked me at Lilith's request? When I got dragged to Hell for realizing that Azazel had plans for Sam?" Marion asked, flipping through the pages.  
       
Sam grabbed the book. "He told you not to do it?" Sam asked. "The demon whose job it is to get people to agree to deals, told you not to do it?"   
     
"And you did it anyway?" Dean tried to grab the book, but Sam refused to relinquish it.  
      
"I couldn't see a downside."  
       
"That's what it says here.  
    
    ** _'Marion couldn't see a downside. Back with her brothers, father unable to see her unless he was sober, working with the demon she loved. She didn't understand why Fergus would tell her not to do it.'_**  
     
So what _was_ the downside?" Sam asked.  
       
"Everything was the downside. Dad couldn't see me except when we were on hunts, so the only quality time I got with him was between shotgun blasts and sneaking around. By the time I made the deal, I had spent so much time at Bobby's that I was practically a stranger. It wasn't Pony and Dean anymore, it was Sam and Dean. And I had this huge secret to keep, on top of it. I was back with you and I was _still_ alone. I never stopped being alienated from this family. And working with Fergus was just dressing up like a whore to get past the defenses of the idiots who were trying to skip on their contracts and then jabbing them with a brand to mark them. Fergus started only showing up when he had a mission for me. He ceased to be a positive effect on my life and became my boss.   
     
I came to resent him as much as I did Dad and myself. I started calling him only by his demon name, and I started smoking, because I would rather taste cigarettes on my breath than his sulfur. I felt so guilty when Dad turned his anger to you, Sammy, I started hunting alone just to have a chance to get hurt. I hated myself and Fergus and...  

And I was unable to be happy... Ever. That's what the downside was." She sighed, a loud shaky breath with whiny undertones. "But if you want to know about me, Dean, read this." She said, flipping the book in Sam's hand to chapter 13.

"How do you know which chapter is which?"  
  
"Here. Just read it."  
  
"What is it?"  
  
"It's where I went after you made me pack my bags in Paolo Alto."  
  
"Dean said things got too real so you bounced."  
  
"Of course he did. Well, yes and no, baby brother. See, Fergus told me that I needed to make myself available to him at all times and that if I didn't, he would find a nice hot slab in hell for me to occupy until he needs me. I was greatly opposed to going to Hell but I couldn't be available while around you two. So I played on Dean's obsessive need to protect you and convinced him to kick me out so that it wouldn't be suspicious when I left."  
  
"You mind-fucked me?"  
  
She shrugged and shook her head a bit.  
  
"How'd you convince him-"  
  
"That'd be the beginning of Chapter 12, I believe."

Sam flipped the pages to the previous chapter. "Do you really believe that?" He asked as he finished the first half of the chapter

"Funny. Dean asked the exact same thing. And I still have the same answer. Wholeheartedly. I believe it more now. Dad died because of Mom, then Mom died because of Dad. Jessica died because of you, to get to you. Then Dad died because of Dean. Dean died because of you. Not to mention all the Witnesses who've died because of us. Please. We are cyanide."  
  
"Huh."  
  
"Anyway. Chapter 13. After I left, Fergus insisted I go to his mansion. Said it was just gonna be us and the hell hounds, but Azazel showed up. I recognized him. Read it, please."  
  
Dean grabbed half the pages and read the book with Sam. "Why would you tell him to take you?" He demanded.  
  
"Because I thought he'd let me go. If he cared about me, he would have let me go and eaten the consequences. But he didn't."  
  
"Not to play demon advocate, but I'm reading this. He seems to care. Like this... _**'Fergus looked at the spot where his Marion had been and howled his anger.'**_ He was upset that Azazel took you."  
  
"Only because he needed me. Just like Azazel needed you and Heaven needs you. I was an important tool. That's all."  
  
"So what's his demon name? I wanna put a hunter APB out on him."

"No. He's Fergus. I won't call him by his chosen name. And it doesn't matter because I'm not his tool anymore. I severed our relationship. No more demons."

Dean sat down and looked over the website. "Check it out. There's actually fans. There's not many of them, but still. Did you read this?

"Yeah."

"Although for fans, they sure do complain a lot. Listen to this – Simpatico says 'the demon story line is trite, clichéd, and overall craptastic.' Yeah, well, screw you, Simpatico. We lived it."

"Yeah. Well, keep on reading. It gets better." Sam urged.

"There are 'Sam girls' and 'Dean girls' and – what's a 'slash fan'?"

"As in... Sam-slash-Dean. Together." Sam answered.

"Like, together together?

"Yeah."

"They do know we're brothers, right?" 

"Doesn't seem to matter. Keep looking." Sam gestured with his hand for Dean to continue down the page.

"Fuck. I don't even have to ask what 'twincest' is. That's disgusting. Oh, come on. That... that's just sick." Dean shut the laptop and shuddered with disgust.

"I thought they didn't like me. Why would they write about me?" Marion said, picking 'The Benders' back up. 

"Yeah, uh, a lot of them were written before your book came out but from what I saw on the summaries of those things... They like writing you into, uh, fan fiction... torture... porn... with Dean doing the harsh shit to you."

"Of course." Marion mumbled, reading the book. 

Sam and Dean exchanged a look and both went to grab a beer. "We got to find this Carver Edlund."

"Yeah, that might not be so easy."

"Why not?"

"No tax records, no known address. Looks like 'Carver Edlund' is a pen name."

"Somebody’s gotta know who he is." Dean grumbled.

**********

"So, I read through your life." Sam stood and walked over to Marion, who was working on her third novel of her brothers' lives, 'Heart'. "It is weird, because I read some of the stuff he wrote about me and Dean, and this is an encyclopedia entry of horrible things compared to our books. Where are the steamy bits?"  
  
She didn't look up from her book as she calmly answered. "He didn't write steamy because I don't live steamy."

"Anymore? Or..."

"Never lived steamy. Fergus made it hard to keep a guy."

"At all? You mean you're a..." Dean trailed off.  
  
"I was. Until I went to Hell. Guess this Carver guy doesn't write the _really_ graphic stuff."  
  
Her brothers stared at her, knowing what she was saying but not understanding how she could say it so nonchalantly. Sam was the first to break free of his trance.  
  
"Mare... I'm so sorry."  
  
"Why?" She finally looked up at the guys, setting the book on the arm of the chair she occupied. "It didn't happen to you, and I've had two centuries to deal with it. Alistair is just the kind of son of a bitch to rape a starving virgin just to make her cry some more. He was a demon. Demons are like that. I'm over it. Two hundred years of over it. Done... Okay, so we've read. You guys go shake down Carver Edlund's publisher, I will head to the agent. Let's go track this asshole down."

Marion ignored her brothers' expressions and walked out of the hotel room.

**********

She sat in the lobby of a bank, nose in a random book she'd swiped off the bed on her way out, casting looks across the street at the agent's office. The book she held in her fists was 'No Rest For The Wicked'. She was in this one and she was surprised by how well he'd written her, even capturing her inner dialog as she watched her brothers sneak around suburbia. She'd wondered why the fans hated her so much and made the mistake of looking it up on her phone. There were fan sites dedicated to hating her. Apparently, she ruined John. She wondered if it would make these people change their minds if they knew that it was a real person that they wished had 'never clawed her way back from Hell'. There were several colorful statements about the truck smashing her as a child and her burning up in the nursery fire, but most people were content with 'Maybe Lilith will drag her back down or eviscerate her. It's not like that bitch could stop her.' She supposed they were right.

Marion was contemplating Sam's strength and what might be the source of it, when Castiel appeared next to her. "Hello, Marion."

"How are you this-" She checked her watch. "-afternoon, Castiel?"

"Well. What are you doing?"

"I'm kinda looking for a man; the author of this book. He seems to know all about our lives and he's using them for entertainment." She handed the book to the angel. "The books give my brothers the heebies, but I'm okay with 'em. It's nice to see what my brothers were up to while I was in Hell. They don't share much. Like, did you know that there was some British chick who played my brothers for fools several times?"

"Bela Talbot, yes. You don't mind these books?"

She shrugged. "The books are fine. Almost well-written. No, it's the fans that bug me. They hate me because my dad was an asshole and this Edlund guy revealed him as such in my big solo novel. I ruined my father for them, by being abused by him. It's weird... wasn't even ruined for _me_ by that." She turned and stared at the agent's office. "You know, Fergus wears a literary agent. Still conducts business as him, sometimes."

"Is that why you won't go inside?" Castiel was gone when she turned to reply, the book resting in his spot. She picked the book up and stood, walking toward the office. Her phone vibrated her pocket as she was jaywalking.

"Hey. The publisher came through for us. Guy's real name is 'Chuck Shurley'. Lives in a place called 'Kripke's Hollow."

"Awesome. Meet me at the rest stop just outside town. We'll go together." Marion turned off the phone and skipped across the street to her car. She was happy to be able to skip the agent's office.

*************


	20. Atlas Can't Shrug

The siblings pulled up to the small house in Kripke's Hollow and approached the door with hesitation. The man on the other side was a mystery and none of them were entirely sure they wanted to solve it. They looked between themselves and gave a shrug before Dean leaned forward and rang the doorbell, applying more pressure than absolutely necessary. They waited until the door opened and they were greeted by a man in a bathrobe. 

"You Chuck Shurley?" Dean asked, immediately.

"The Chuck Shurley who write the Supernatural books?" Sam was next.

"Maybe. Why?" The man was apprehensive and his voice wore his feelings. 

Marion chose to smile, in an attempt to calm him. "I'm Marion. This is Dean and Sam."

"The Dean and Sam you've been writing about." Dean continued. The man nodded and closed his door on them. Dean reached out and rang the bell again. 

The door opened again and Chuck looked out at them. "Look, uh... I appreciate your enthusiasm. Really, I do. It's, uh, always nice to hear from the fans. But, uh, for your own good, I suggest you get a life." He went to shut the door again, but Dean stopped it with his hand.

"See, here's the thing. We have a life. You've been using it to write your books." Dean shoved the door open and Chuck stumbled backward as the Winchesters entered the home.

"Now, wait a minute. Now, this isn't funny." He stammered as Marion closed the door behind them.

"Damn straight, it's not funny." Dean threatened as he towered over the writer.

"Look, we just wanna know how you're doing it." Sam reasoned.

"I'm not doing anything." Chuck swore.

"Are you a hunter?" Dean asked.

"What? No. I'm a writer."

"Then how do you know so much about demons?" Dean asked, stepping forward. Chuck scrambled backward, falling on his couch and looking up at the brothers pathetically. "And Tulpas and changelings?"

"Is this some kind of Misery thing? Aw, it is, isn't it? It's a Misery thing!"

Marion sat on the edge of his coffee table and put a hand up to stay her brothers. "No, it's not a Misery thing. Trust us, we aren't fans, Chuck."

"Well, then, what do you want!?"

"I'm Sam. This is Marion and that's Dean."

"Sam, Dean and Marion are fictional characters! I made them up! They're not real!" The writer yelled.

Marion stood. "Tie your robe, Chuck. Let us show you something." She placed a gentle hand on the man's back and pushed him out to the Impala. She could feel that he wanted to run but she was hoping her demeanor, completely contrary to her brothers', would be enough to keep him in place as Dean opened the trunk and pulled up the false bottom.

"Are those real guns?" 

"Yup. This is real rock salt, these are real fake IDs." Dean responded.

"Well, I got to hand it to you guys. You really are my number one fans. That-that's awesome." Chuck started to walk back to the house as he spoke, nerves evident in his voice. "So, I-I think I've got some posters in the house."

"Chuck, stop." Dean demanded.

"Please. Wait. Please, don't hurt me." Chuck begged.

"How much do you know?" Sam asked. "Do you know about the angels? Or Lilith breaking the seals?"

"Wait a minute. How do you know about that?" Chuck asked.

"Our question is, how do you?" Marion asked, softly.

"Because I wrote it?"

"You kept writing?" Sam asked.

"Yeah. Even after the publisher went bankrupt. But those books never came out." The Winchesters looked from each other to the author, who started to chuckle. "Okay, wait a minute. This is some kind of joke, right? Did that- did Phil put you up to this?"

"Well, nice to meet you. I'm Dean Winchester, this is my twin sister Marion, and this is our brother, Sam."

Chuck looked shocked. "The last names were never in the books. I never told anybody about that. I never even wrote that down."

"You ready to have a grown-up conversation with us, Chuck? We won't hurt you." Marion promised. Chuck blinked at them and turned, rushing back into the house.

"Why ya goin' soft on 'im?" Dean asked as they followed Chuck back into his house.

"I don't know. Good cop, maybe. Or maybe, I don't think he knew we were real when he was writing it. Maybe, we should be nicer to a guy who probably knows _all_ our secrets." She pushed past her brothers and leaned against Chuck's sink as he filled a glass with whiskey and downed the liquor. He turned back around, groaning as his eyes fell on the siblings.

"Oh! Oh, you're still there."

"Yup." Dean put his hands in his pockets.

"You're not a hallucination."

"Nope."

"Sorry to disappoint." Marion chuckled.

"Well, there's only one explanation. Obviously, I'm a god." Chuck leaned against his desk.

"You're not a god." Sam shot him down, quickly.

"How else do you explain it? I write things and then they come to life? Yeah, no, I'm definitely a god." He argued. He shook his head. "A cruel, cruel, capricious god. The things I put you through- the physical beatings alone."

"Yeah, we're still in one piece." Dean spoke up.

"I killed your father. I burned your mother alive. And then you had to go through the whole horrific deal again with Jessica."

"Chuck." Sam and Marion chimed.

"I sent both twins to Hell. All for what?" He turned to look at Marion, still leaning against the sink. "All for the sake of literary symmetry. I toyed with your lives, your emotions, for... entertainment."

"You didn't _toy_ with us, Chuck, okay? You didn't create us." Dean pushed himself away from the wall and stepped up to the desk.

"Did you really have to live through the bugs?"

Dean gave an exasperated look to Sam. "Yeah."

"What about the ghost ship?"

"Yes, that too."

"I am so sorry. I mean, horror is one thing, but to be forced to live bad writing... if I would have know it was real, I would have done another pass."

"Chuck, you're not a god!" Dean growled.

Sam stood tall. "We think you're probably just psychic."

"No. If I were psychic, you think I'd be writing? Writing is hard." Chuck whined, sitting at his computer.

"It seems that somehow, you're just... focused on our lives." Sam reasoned.

"Yeah, like laser-focused. Are you working on anything right now?" Dean asked.

"Holy crap."

"What?" Marion stepped next to his desk chair.

Chuck picked up a stack of papers resting under a pair of reading glasses. "The, uh, latest book? It's, uh, it's kinda weird."

"Weird how?" Sam asked.

"It's very Vonnegut."

Dean leaned down. "Slaughterhouse-Five' Vonnegut or 'Cats Cradle' Vonnegut?"

Marion raised a surprised eyebrow while Sam barked a surprised, "What?"

"What?" Dean defended. Sam made a face at him, but Dean just turned back to the writer.

"It's, uh, 'Kilgore Trout' Vonnegut. I wrote myself into it. I wrote myself, at my house... confronted by my characters."

"We're gonna need that. Everything you've been working on for this new book." Dean demanded. Chuck handed a stack of papers to him.

"That's all I've got so far. I'm not very far into this one."

"All right. We're gonna figure out how you're doing this and we'll put an end to it. We'll be back, Chuck. Count on it." Dean started toward the door, but Marion stopped him as Chuck walked up his stairs.

"I'm gonna stay. Someone should keep an eye on him, see if there's anything else... anything else here."

Dean looked from his twin to the staircase, then nodded. "We'll be back."

Marion sat on the couch and picked up a book from the table. 'Scarecrow'. She was halfway through the first chapter when she heard footsteps on the stairs. "When I dreamed you, it was always in pieces. You were always fuzzy. I could see your life, but not... all of you. Woman of my dreams and I never even saw your face."

Marion turned to Chuck, setting the book on the table. 'Woman of my dreams' was the highest compliment she'd ever been given. She smiled at the ragged author. "I'm glad you couldn't see me. You, of all people, should know that I didn't have a lot to smile about back then. I'm so much prettier when I'm smiling."

Chuck entered the living room and sat next to her on the couch. "Why'd you stay behind? Why aren't you with Dean and Sam at the laundromat?"

"Because I have questions. Well, comments, really. Sam and I read your book about me. You left out a lot."

Chuck looked uncomfortable. "There was a lot to choose from. I almost didn't write what I did. Showing John as an abusive father..." He shook his head and stood. "The fans like him. They see him as their father figure, kinda like Obi Wan, but a Marine."

"And an alcoholic." She chipped in.

"Right. I got some nasty letters after I published 'Pony's Tale'. My publisher blames your life for them going bankrupt. She didn't want to publish it, at all, but... I felt like it was a story that needed to be told. Imagine how much worse it would have been if I had added the full horrible ordeal of your 250 _years_ in Hell."

"I'm not upset. I'm thanking you." Marion stood and smiled, softly, at him. "The last thing I want is for people to pity me, even if they think I'm fictional. I didn't want my brothers to look at me as a victim, to see what happened in Hell whenever they look at me. The most horrible thing I can think of is Crowley finding out what his buddy, Alistair, did to me. So, thank you. And thanks for never using his demon name." Chuck gave a look of confusion so she chuckled. "With all the interaction we've had with demons lately... Lilith, Ruby, Alistair, all the crossroads demons... some of them know him. At some point, someone is going to mention Crowley, and my brothers won't know him. They won't know that Fergus is Crowley... and that will make it easier for me."

"To treat him like he's just any other demon?"

"You saw that, huh?"

"Yeah. Also, and it might be totally not my business, but... you seem to be getting kinda close to Castiel."

"He's nice, and innocent and naive and so wise and he's stopped treating me like an abomination. And he didn't choose a bad-looking vessel, but... I know there's a man in there. A human man who probably had a family and a life and is just waiting to go home. Castiel is off-limits. I know that." She didn't mean for it to come out so sad, but she couldn't help it.

Chuck grabbed a bottle from his bookcase and sat on the couch. "I know I'm not an angel, but can I offer you a drink? I've even got another cup around here, somewhere."

Marion flopped down next to him, took the bottle from his grasp and chuckled. "It's been a while since I had a drink. A _real_ drink, I mean. Since I stopped smoking."

"You don't have to drink it." Chuck reached over to take it back, but she took the top off and began to chug it. "Wow. I said, 'Woman of my dreams' but that... I've never met a woman who could drink like that." He stared at her, enamored, as he took the bottle back.

"Drinking is a hunter imperative. Can't do this job unless you can numb yourself. Ellen can drink me under the table, you should meet her."

"She owned a roadhouse. Unfair advantage."

Realization hit her as the whiskey settled in her stomach. "Shit." She whispered. "Woman of your dreams wasn't just a compliment, was it?"

Chuck sought refuge in his bottle as he felt her rejection coming. "Look, it's not you, Chuck. I'm just... no good at this stuff. Crowley made this... extraordinarily hard for me and... now I've got an angel in my dreams, kissing me. I just... now's the worst time."

"An angel you can't have. Said it yourself." He mumbled around the mouth of the bottle.

Marion grabbed the whiskey back and took another gulp. "Chuck, you don't want me. I'm old and... broken and..."

"Strong, independent, bad-ass, hot as fuck. Why would I want _that_?" His blue eyes bore into her as the sarcasm rolled off his tongue.

"Semi-suicidal, tired, 250 year old virgin who's universally hated by _all_ of your fans."

"My fans are idiots." He responded, quickly. "These are people who idolize John. John, who was obsessive and terrible to Dean and Sam, whose only redeeming moments were choosing Dean over himself and lifting you out of the pit. You survived John Winchester's drunken fists, you survived 10 years as Crowley's errand-runner, got attacked by a Hellhound and spent 238 years in a sweltering cell where you survived more unspeakable shit at Alistair's hands. Then, you make it topside and you  _don't_ hang up your hunter cap, which would have made sense after what you went through and the physical condition you were in. You are amazing. Everything you've been through, I wouldn't fault you for being broken. You aren't, though. You came out of Hell more put together than Dean did, and you were there 6 times as long as he was. 'Woman of my dreams' is more than a compliment, more than just the truth... you are everything any man would want." Chuck took the bottle back as Marion stared, dumbfounded. "I-I'm not saying you have to... give me a shot, but... don't think about yourself like that. Of all my characters, you're the best."

She scoffed as he took another drink. "Not a character, Chuck. But thanks."

Chuck nodded and handed her a pillow. "You're gonna want to sleep it off. I'll be at my desk."

"I'm fine, Chuck. Really. It's not like I've never had whiskey before."

*****************************

When Marion woke up, she was still drunk. She could feel it, a little swimming feeling in her head, a little nausea in her stomach. There was a glass of water, a bottle of aspirin and a bottle of Pepto Bismol on the coffee table. She wondered if there was anything to eat in the little house as she downed some Pepto and aspirin. "There's stuff for sandwiches, if you want." Chuck called out from his desk. He was frantically typing.

She stood and walked into the kitchen. "You have another vision?" She asked, sipping at the glass of water.

"Yeah." His voice was vague, his focus on the screen.

"So?" She placed the glass on his desk next to his mouse. "What's gonna happen?"

"Uh..." He looked up from the screen and took a deep breath. "Um... it's not good. Can you call your brothers?"

"Of course. Is... are we okay?"

"Um..." Chuck shrugged and turned to press 'print' on the word processor.

"That's encouraging." Marion pulled her cell out and dialed Dean. "Hey. Chuck needs you back here."

"What's up?"

"I don't know. I... there was... he had another vision or something. I don't know. I'm still swimming in whiskey, right now. Just get here."

"You were drinking, why?"

"Dude, why do you drink? Just get in the damn car."

"They're already in the car." Chuck mumbled as the printer whirred to life.

"Apparently, you're already in the car, so just get here." She turned off the call and sighed. "Douchebag."

"He's not so bad." Chuck said, turning in his seat and looking up at her, his glasses hanging at the tip of his nose.

"He's been a dick to me since I was 12 years old, Chuck. You've seen that... right?" She asked, quietly starting to doubt herself again.

"Don't doubt that. He has been. He didn't support you when John started beating you and he made you doubt that it was even happening. If he'd been able to stand beside you, maybe you wouldn't have signed up to be Crowley's helper, but..." Chuck stood, pulling his glasses off and setting them on his keyboard. "You don't need him to sacrifice for you, Marion. _You_ are the strong one. You hold up Dean, Dean holds up Sam. It's how it's always been. Atlas didn't like the job, either, but someone has to be the structure, you know?"

She blinked, rapidly as her eyes watered. "God... just wish I could rest." She whispered. Chuck nodded and patted her shoulder, before turning back to the printer.

*****************************

Chuck stared at the pages in his hands as he paced the length of his living room, between the Winchesters. Sam looked from Marion, quietly standing by the kitchen, to Chuck. "So... you wrote another chapter?"

"This was all so much easier before you were real." Chuck whined.

"We can take it; just spit it out." Dean demanded.

" _You_ especially are not gonna like this."

"I didn't like _Hell_." Dean responded, quickly.

Chuck sighed, looking down at the papers. "It's Lilith. She's coming for Sam."

"Coming to kill him?" The twins asked.

"When?" There was almost an excitement in Sam's words.

"Tonight."

"She's just gonna show up? Here?" Dean asked as Chuck walked around his coffee table to sit on the couch.

"Uh, let's see, uh..." Chuck put his glasses on and focused on the manuscript. " _ **'Lilith patted the bed seductively. Unable to den his desire, Sam succumbed, and they sank into the throes of fiery demonic passion.'**_ "

Sam barked a laugh, which caused the room to shift focus to him. "You're kidding me, right?"

"You think this is funny?" Dean accused.

"You don't? I mean, come on. 'Fiery demonic passion'?"

"It's just a first draft." Chuck defended.

"Wait, wait, wait, wait. Lilith is a little girl."

"Not always." Marion responded, stepping forward. "She prefers little girls, but I've seen her wearing teenagers and old nuns. She was Ruby that one time."

"Yeah, uh, this time she's a ' _ **comely dental hygienist from Bloomington, Indiana.**_ " Chuck responded, flipping pages.

"Great. Perfect. So, what happens after the... 'fiery demonic' whatever?" Dean asked.

"I don't know, it hasn't come to me, yet."

"Dean, look, there's nothing to worry about. Lilith and _me_? In bed?"

Dean glared at Sam as he asked Chuck, "How does this whole psychic thing of yours work?"

"You mean my process?"

"Yes, your 'process'."

"Well, it usually starts with a headache. A really bad headache. Aspirin is useless, so... I drink. Until I fall asleep. The first time it happened, I thought it was just a crazy dream." 

"The first time you dreamt about us?" Marion asked.

"It flowed. It just, it kept flowing. It still does. I-I can't stop it, really."

"You guys can't _seriously_ believe-" Sam started, but Dean interrupted.

"Humor me." Dean stood as Sam threw out his offended vibe. Chuck held up the papers. "Look, why don't we, we just... take a look at these and see what's what." Dean took the pages and looked down at Chuck. "You-"

"... knew you were gonna ask for that. Yeah."

"Come on. We need you with us, Mare, not sitting around the psychic's house, drinking." Dean stomped toward the door and Marion resisted the urge to tell him off.

"See ya, Atlas." Chuck whispered as the Winchesters walked out the door.

Sam immediately started going through the pages as they drove away. "Dean, come on. ' _ **The minivan accident wasn't that bad, but Dean was still seeing stars. He scratched absently at the pink flower Band-Aids on his face.'**_ "

"So?"

"So, I've seen you gushing blood. You'd use duct tape and bar rags before you'd put on a pink flower Band-Aid."

"I'm sure there's a point in all this whining." Marion chimed from the backseat.

"My point is this, all of this, is totally implausible. It's nuts."

"He's been right about _everything_ so far. You think he's just gonna ground out at first now?"

Sam scoffed and turned back to the pages. "Huh. **_'Dean slid behind the wheel of his beloved Impala and drove off, the plastic tarp on the rear window flapping like the wings of a crow.'_** "

"A tarp?"

"Yeah. On the rear window. And you drive it like that." Sam challenged.

"Well, he might be wrong about the details, but doesn't mean he's wrong about the end result."

"So, we're just gonna run?" Sam seemed offended by the idea.

"Dude, we are a long way from ready for a face-to-face death match with Lilith."

"Not that it seems like she's here for that. She might be here just for some 'fiery demonic passion'." Marion laughed as Sam turned to glare at her.

Dean pulled onto the road out of town and sighed as his eyes fell on two sheriff's department vehicles pulled across the road. A deputy stepped up to the window and Dean leaned out. "What seems to be the problem?"

"Bridge is out ahead."

"We're just trying to get out of town."

"Yeah, 'fraid not." The deputy responded.

"Is there a detour?" Marion asked.

"Nope."

"There's not a side road that takes us to the highway?"

"To get to the highway, you have to cross that river. To cross that river, you have to take that bridge."

"How deep's the river?" Dean shot back.

"Sorry. Afraid you all are gonna have to spend the night in town."

Marion shook her head as Dean turned the car around and drove back into town. "You guys hungry? I'm hungry."

************************

The trio sat at a small table in Kripke's Hollow Diner. Marion played on her phone as Dean searched through the pages of the chapter and Sam looked at the menu. "Hey. This could be a good thing. I mean, if this is what puts us on the path to Lilith, then all we got to do is get off the path."

"How do you mean?" Sam looked up from the plastic-covered menu.

"It's a blueprint of what _not_ to do. I mean, if the pages say that we go left-"

"Then we go right."

"Good premise, but if I've seen enough television, won't work." Marion put her phone on the table and looked over at her twin.

"This isn't a damn tv show. This'll work. We get off-book. We never make it to the end. It's opposite day. It says that _we_ , uh, we get into a fight. So, no fighting." Dean gestured at Sam. "No research for you and Marion struggles with someone offering her a cigarette. Gonna need you to smoke."

"No bacon cheeseburger for _you_." Sam read across the table and upside down.

"Yeah, no problem. I'll just order something else." Dean was slightly upset by the notion, but determined to do what was needed. As the waitress approached, he smiled. "Hi, uh, what's good?"

"Well, if you like burgers, Oprah's girlfriend said we have the best bacon cheeseburgers in the country."

Sam and Marion chuckled as Dean nodded, ruefully. "Really?"

"I'll have one of those." Marion smirked at Dean, who glared at her.

"I'll just have the Cobb salad, please." Sam looked expectantly at Dean, who made a disgusted face as hesettled on his order.

"I'll have the... veggie tofu burger. Thanks." They each handed their menu to the server, who walked away.

"This whole thing's ridiculous." Sam said, quietly.

"Lilith is ridiculous?"

"The idea of me hooking up with her is." Sam countered.

"Right. 'Cause something like that can never happen." Dean chuckled.

Marion could see the argument rising up in her little brother. "Dean, for the first time, we have warning that Lilith is close."

"So?" The twins asked, not following Sam's train of thought.

"So... we've got the jump on her. If we know when she's coming, we know where's sh- this is an opportunity."

"Are you-" Dean cut himself off and took a breath. "It frustrates me when you say such reckless things."

"Well, it _frustrates_ me when you'd rather hide than fight."

Marion couldn't help the chuckles that rocked her as her brothers glared across the table at each other. "Winchesters using 'I feel' statements. Oh, my gods. That's beautiful."

"Cobb salad for you. And the tofu veggie burger for you. And I will be right back with your bacon cheeseburger."

The waitress turned to leave and Dean leaned forward. "It's not hiding. It's being smart. It's picking your battles. This is a battle we are not ready to fight." He took a huge bite of the veggie burger as Sam looked down at his salad. "Oh, my god. This is delicious! Tofu is amazing!"

"I am so sorry. I gave you her bacon cheeseburger, by mistake. Let me get you-" The waitress picked up the plate and started to walk away, but Marion put her hand out.

"He's my brother. I don't need another one. Just make sure he gets his veggie burger." Marion put the plate on the table in front of her and smiled, tightly, at her brothers. "Oh, and BTW, that _was_ a fight."

Sam and Dean both rolled their eyes at her as she bit into the burger.

***************************

Marion stood next to the refrigerator of their room at the Toreador Motel. She didn't want to be here. It gave her bad vibes, but she wasn't going to talk shit about it. Dean was fairly gung-ho about it. She watched as her twin walked around the room, placing hex bags.

"What are you doing?" Sam asked.

"Couple of hex bags ought to Lilith-proof the room."

"So, what? I'm supposed to just hole up here all night?"

"That's exactly what you're gonna do, okay? And no research. I don't care what you do. Use the Magic Fingers or watch Casa Erotica on Pay-Per-View." Dean set his eyes on Sam's bag, reaching into it and pulling out his laptop.

"Oh, dude, come on."

Dean put his hand up. "Just call it a little insurance."

"What are _you_ gonna do?"

"Well, the pages say that I spend all day riding around in the Impala. So, I'm gonna go park her. Marion is supposed to be having some 'Fergus-related' existential nicotine crisis, so she is going to walk down the street to the arcade and skee-ball to her little heart's desire. Behave yourself, would you? No homework. Watch some porn." Dean held the door open for his sister and left.

"It doesn't say _**'Fergus-related' existential nicotine crisis**_." Marion accused.

"You read it? You don't know." Dean threw Sam's laptop into the Impala and looked out at her. "You should have a cigarette. It says you decide not to because you don't need to punish yourself. You should have one, anyway."

"To get off of your little road to Lilith? She'll be here. Whether Sam fucks her is completely up in the air, but she'll be here."

"'Path to Lilith' and I think you should do what you can to help us on this. Be a team player, Marion."

Marion scoffed and started walking toward the arcade they'd driven past on the way to the motel. "'Be a team player'? I'm the teamiest player on this stupid fuckin' team." She muttered to herself.


	21. The WWWTOTBV Club

Marion looked around the arcade. She was one of a half-dozen customers. She spent all of her quarters on skee-ball and pinball and that had made the first several hours fly but the time was moving slow now that she was out of money. She took a sip of her iced tea and thought about the cigarette Dean kept insisting she smoke. Smoking reminded her of Crowley. 'Fergus-related existential crisis' was right. For some stupid reason, she was missing him. Something about being hit on by Chuck, about having Castiel kiss her... she was longing for the simpler times, before she found him out for who he really is, before Hell, before everything went to shit. She stood and walked outside to get some fresh air. As she took in several deep breaths and tasted the sulfur there, her mind went back to her teen years.

She remembered standing outside a bar at 17 as Dean flirted with grown women inside between helping their father hustle pool. A cigarette between her lips, she dug through her pockets, looking for her Zippo lighter. She was about to go in and ask Dean for his when the end of the cigarette burst into flame. She took a drag to brighten the ember at the end and smiled at Crowley as he stepped forward. She'd still been so enamored with him, even if she hated the job. "You got an assignment for me, Fergus?"

"No." He said, simply. "No, Lilith sent me up here on another task, thought I'd take the opportunity to see my girl. Don't get to see you as much these days. Don't want our friendship to fall to the wayside of our working relationship."

"Well, Dad's been drinking, so the only one who'll notice me leaving is Dean... and I'm 90 percent sure he's talked his way into some milf's jeans, so... how much time you got?"

"Not lon-"

"Hey, baby-doll!" A drunk bald man with a red beard stumbled out of the bar and placed his hand on her shoulder. "You wanna take a break from your daddy and come play with me?"

"I'm good, thanks." She answered, pulling away from him.

"Oh, come on! Don't be a bitch!"

"The lady said 'no'. Move on." Crowley defended, looking more annoyed than angry.

"Come on, man. Look at her big ass. There's enough for both of us."

Annoyance turned to fury in a flash and Crowley's eyes turned to bright red as he grabbed the man's chin with one hand and twisted his head around like an 'Exorcist' movie. As his body fell to the ground, Marion let out a shocked gasp. Crowley's eyes flicked back to hazel as he gazed upon Marion's terrified face. "Shit. I'm sorry. I know you hate it when I... let me get... He shouldn't have said that. You don't talk about a woman like that. I'll get rid of him. I..."

"It's fine, Crowley. Just get rid of him before anyone sees."

He blinked at her and she knew why. 'Crowley'. She had never called him anything other than 'Fergus'. He hadn't said anything, though, simply picking up the dead man and disappearing. She'd finished her cigarette and gone back inside the bar.

"Hey, sweetheart. You got a light?" Marion was pulled from her thoughts and smiled at a man beside her. She pulled her Zippo from her jacket pocket and flicked it alight. The man lit his cigarette and breathed deeply. "You want one?" He offered his box of Marlboros to her and she sighed, taking the offer.

"Thanks."

"No problem. So... you alone?" He asked.

"Yep. You trolling for women at the arcade?"

"I'm always trolling for women."

Marion chuckled at him, tucking the cigarette behind her ear. "Yeah, well..." She turned to him. He was tall, but skinny and not very well muscled. She was sure she could take him without any effort. "I'm not your type, Casanova."

"How do you know?"

She laughed, pulling her right arm out of her jacket and pointing to a large pink scar. "See this? This is from a Bowie knife. Got it from a big ol' biker in South Dakota. This one, a drug dealer in San Antone." She pulled her neckline down to show the scar from her fight with Crowley's hound. "Set his rottweiler on me. You couldn't survive me, little boy. But thanks for the cigarette." She pulled it from her ear and tossed it to the ground, stepping on it as she walked toward the parking lot.

As she put her arm back into her jacket, a voice came to her. "It's weird. You haven't had this much confidence sense before Alistair got his hands on you." Marion froze. The voice wasn't familiar, but she knew. It was Lilith. "Well, you still haven't gotten over all that, am I right?"

Marion turned to the blond woman with the heart-shaped face. "Why are you here? You aren't supposed to be with me."

"You're right. I'm here for Sam, but... how could I resist?" Lilith slid across to sit on the hood of the closest car. "I mean, it's been far too long, Marion."

"You say that like we were friends, Lilith."

"No. Not friends. We just... _shared_ a dear friend. In the biblical sense."

Marion shook her head, scoffing. "He wishes. Or wished, whatever. I never fucked him. But he fucked you. Probably when you were wearing a little girl. 'Cause you're demons and nothing is too much-"

"Am I supposed to be offended? You knew what you were getting into when you were 16. That first meeting. You remember? I wore a nun, to make you feel more comfy."

"I remember. You think I'd forget anything about that night?"

"I don't know. It seemed to me like that kiss might've cut off the oxygen to your brain. You were so... enthusiastic."

"I was 16. I didn't know any better." She shook her head. "Are you here to kill me, Lilith?"

"No... you get to live. For now. Always useful to have a 'wildcard' on my team."

"I am, most definitely, _not_ on your team. You don't have me on contract, anymore."

Lilith was suddenly in front of Marion. "I don't need a contract to control you, little girl. All I have to do is dangle what you want in front of you."

"I am not... _that_... weak." She stood her ground, growling at the demon. "I had everything I could possibly want. I was living a dream. I could've died happy, but I was too strong for that shit and I jumped off the world to get back to this stupid life. You have _nothing_ I want, nothing worth my integrity, so get the fuck away from me."

Lilith smiled, one side of her mouth turning up higher than the other. "We'll see if your brother says the same." She disappeared and Marion closed her eyes, leaning against a car to catch her breath.

She pulled out her cell and dialed Dean. "Dean, you need to get to the motel. I think Lilith's there."

"Yeah, Sam practically rolled out the welcome mat for her. I have a plan and I'm on my way, but if you can get there first, it might help..."

"Yeah, I'm on my way, too, but... wait, how do you Sam sabotaged you? What, you went to the motel already?"

"God, don't start this, with the 'you're leaving me out' bullshit. I've been busy, haven't been able to call. Just... get to the damn motel."

Marion turned her phone off and ran down the street toward the Toreador. She threw the door open, her eyes falling on the bed, Sam and Lilith fighting there. She breathed a sigh of relief as they froze in their positions, with Lilith about to stab Sam with the Kurdish knife. "You're getting quite adept at that." Castiel was suddenly next to her.

She smiled, unable to defeat the surge of happiness she felt at seeing him. "Well, once I figured out how I did it, it came pretty easily." Castiel tilted his head in that adorable confused form she loved so much. "I didn't really freeze them or stop time, I just stopped their perception of it. The world is still moving, time ticking forward, but their minds aren't registering it. They are paused."

"Brilliant."

"It's nothing."

"Why do we not attack Lilith while she is stilled?" Castiel turned toward the bed.

Marion put a hand on his shoulder. "I haven't experimented with this much. I'm afraid that if we were to touch them, they would perceive the change and start moving again. So, I think the best thing to do is wait for Dean and hope his plan works."

Castiel looked sure of himself as he leaned forward slightly and said, "Dean's plan _will_ work."

"Do you know how long he'll be?"

"Is it tiring for you to keep them in such a state?"

"No. Not at all. I'm just... anxious. Being around _her,_ it's unnerving."

"If he continues at his current rate, he will be here in 5 minutes."

Marion nodded, pushing her hands into her back pockets, trying to think of something to talk about until Dean showed up. "So, my brothers read my life story. Well, Sam did, anyway. So, they know almost everything about me now. There are only a few things that are just mine."

"Yours?"

"Secrets. Like, Fergus' demon name or, you know,  _this_." She gestured to the bed. "Or how I feel about you."

Castiel looked away at that so Marion smiled. "Don't do that. I'm not trying to be pushy or anything, just adding it to the list. It's like I told Chuck when we were drinking earlier, I know you're off-limits."

"Marion..." He started, but couldn't find the words he was looking for.

"No, I mean... Maybe that's why I like you, 'cause I know I can't have you. I mean, I'm not very well adjusted. I spent my formative years pining after a demon who killed any boy I tried to get over him with. And then I went to Hell and you know what happened to me there. I mean, it's no wonder I'd fall for an unavailable angel of the Lord. That way I don't have to acknowledge how fucked up I am."

Castiel stepped forward, wrapping his arms around her, tightly. "You aren't. And I'm not... unavailable. I may have rules, but that doesn't mean I don't  _feel._ "

"I don't want you to get in trouble." She whispered, but she relaxed into the hug, wrapping her arms around his waist. "Not for me. Not for... a broken..."

"You aren't a broken woman, Marion."

"I am. I-" The angel pulled back and brought his lips down to hers. It wasn't rough or needy, but soft and sweet. Marion melted into it, her lips moving against his. The sound of the Impala screeching to a halt outside the open motel room door pulled them from their interaction. Castiel pulled away and disappeared without a word as Dean ran into the room with Chuck. The frozen pair started to move as Dean gave Marion a bitchface.

"You just get here? What'd you do, walk?"

Chuck rushed forward as Marion rolled her eyes, and put his hand up. "I am the prophet Chuck!"

"You've _got_ to be joking." Lilith twisted off the bed, knife still in hand, and stalked toward Chuck.

The walls began to rattle and shake. "Oh, this is _no_ joke." Dean looked around as the tremble got worse. "You see, Chuck here's got an archangel on his shoulder." Light began to pour through the window as Lilith walked forward. "You've got about 10 seconds before this room is full of wrath and you're a piece of charcoal. You sure you want to tangle with that?"

As pieces of the ceiling began to fall to the floor and the painting over the bed hit the pillow, Lilith turned to glare at Sam, before opening her mouth and letting her smoke-form pour out of the hygienist's mouth. Marion was the only one not breathing heavily as Dean checked to make sure the vessel was no longer Lilith. "So... how'd that 'prepare and fight' thing work for you?" Dean challenged. Sam just looked down.

"You guys grab our shit. I'm gonna take Chuck home." Marion grabbed the keys from Dean's pocket and put her hand on Chuck's shoulder, pushing him out the door. "So, prophet, huh?" She commented as they rolled out of the parking lot.

"What, Castiel didn't tell you?" Chuck seemed jealous, but he did his best to hold his tone.

"What'd you see?"

"Pieces. Like always with you, I just got pieces. A weird piece of Sam and Lilith not moving and you and Castiel kissing."

"Do you think he's going to get in trouble? For kissing me?"

"I don't know. Maybe." Chuck looked out the window. "You were there for a while before we got there, though. How'd you manage-"

"I have a thing that I can do. I can't believe you haven't seen it."

Chuck looked down. "Uh, oh, you figured out how you did it?!"

"It's a perception thing. I've always had that extra-awesome perception and now, I guess, I can change other people's perception. Anyway..."

"He can't be with you, you know. Like, even if he was allowed to have a relationship, he doesn't know how to be in one."

As Marion turned onto the main street, she bit her lip. "Me, neither."

***************************

Marion set her bag down in the motel room and dropped to the cot they'd pulled into the room. Dean walked in behind her and grabbed her bag, throwing it onto the bed closest the door. She looked up at him from the cot as he dropped his bag to the ground by her feet and flopped down next to her. "Go lie down." He instructed, pointing to the bed.

Marion looked to her twin. She could count on one hand the amount of times Dean had offered her the bed since they stopped sharing one as kids. "It's not our birthday, is it?" She asked.

Dean shook his head. "I read that book, you know. Chuck's book about you. Not just the bits and pieces. I read all of it." He leaned forward, causing the cot to squeak. "I never realized how much bullshit you really had to take from me. I didn't even realize I was doing most of it. I knew that trying to keep you quiet about Dad was selfish and horrible, but I... didn't see that I treat you like a burden, a lot. I act like you don't know what you're doing, I make you stay in the car, I never let you drive and you never get the bed now that we bunk in the same room again. I mean, even yesterday, I was ragging on you for having a damn drink with Chuck. I don't know why, really, because I know that you are an awesome hunter and an amazing sister."

Dean turned his head just enough to see her. "You could've gone to college. You were accepted at  _Harvard._  I mean, we never woulda been able to pay for it, but... I know that University of South Dakota offered you a full ride and you never even mentioned it, because you didn't wanna leave  _me._  You stayed for me, and what do I give you in return? Shit. At some point after Dad started in on you, I followed him right into it and I never even realized. You worked for demons for 10 years and I never questioned where you disappeared to at night. I didn't care to know. You weren't even sneaky about it." His eyes were watering as he looked away from her to stare at the TV, sitting lifeless on the other side of the room. "You know, there was a point way back at the beginning, we were probably still 12, when I figured it out. My twin started dying her hair and wearing heavy make-up and it wasn't for boys 'cause she was more shy than ever before. Even a dumbass preteen could see why. Something in me, though, it told me that I could be a good son or a good brother in that situation. I couldn't be both. I made the  _wrong_ choice, Pony, and I am so sorry." His voice cracked as his shoulders slumped and his eyes finally let go of his tears.

Marion looked at him in shock for a few moments, before leaning over around wrapping her arm around him. "I don't blame you, D. I never have. I've always understood. I love you and I can say that 'cause I'm a girl."

Dean's sobs turned into chuckles as he turned and wrapped his twin in a tight hug. "I love you, too, Pony. I promise to be better."

The door opened and Sam entered with a bag of burritos. He stopped short of the little round table and stared at his siblings. "Did I... miss something?"

"Hey, shut your mouth unless you want to be a part of this Lifetime movie moment." Marion snapped, playfully. Dean pulled out of the hug and wiped his eyes on the sleeve of his shirt. The twins both felt a heaviness lift off of them as they stood and grabbed a burrito from the bag. Things might just end up being okay.

***********************

Marion woke to the sound of wings. She sat up in bed and looked from Sam, asleep in the bed next to her, to Dean asleep on the cot 5 feet away, then settled in on Castiel. "Hi." She whispered, a small smile on her lips. He didn't respond, just staring at her. "Uh, is this one of those 'go back to sleep and pretend I didn't notice you' things?"

"I think it would be best if I didn't enjoy your quiet, any longer." Castiel finally spoke, quietly.

"Oh." She looked down.

"I have conditioned myself to crave your serenity in times of stress. It's often all I can think of when things get difficult. If that weren't distracting enough, last night I learned that I savor the feel of your lips. The taste of them is beyond compare. I cannot... be an effective soldier for Heaven's Army if I cannot focus. So, I will no longer be alone with you."

She looked up and smiled as she nodded, slightly. "I understand. Those rules exist for a reason, right? Probably for exactly this reason." She slipped from the bed and stepped up to him. "I care about you and I don't want you to get hurt or in trouble for me. I know what happens to angels who break the rules and I would never wish that on you. Cura te ipsum. 'Take care of yourself first' and I'll do the same."

She placed a kiss on his cheek and went to step back and away, but he wrapped his arms around her and held her in place with a tight hug. He dipped his head to nestle in the crook of her neck. "Cas... this is kinda the opposite of what we were just talking about." She whispered as her heart rate picked up.

"I am wondering if your skin tastes as good as it smells, if it tastes as good as your lips do." There was a heat to his words.

"Cas..." As the angel began to suck at the pulse point on the left of her neck, she had to stop herself from moaning. She closed her eyes as his tongue began to trace her jawline and the angel clumsily pushed them onto the bed. As he moved along her neck and her collarbone, which was easily accessible with the camisole she wore to sleep, she could feel a hardening bit of flesh in his slacks poking her in the thigh. "Cas... we... oh, my." She breathed as his left hand found her right breast. He maneuvered them so that he was settled between her legs, his erection resting against her mound as he grabbed her head and kissed her hungrily.

It became abundantly clear to Marion, as Castiel rubbed himself against her, that he was in a hormonal fog, unable to think. As much as she liked it, as good as it felt, she couldn't let it continue. "Castiel, st-ah." Her whisper turned into a moan as his exploring hand found its way into her pajama pants. Suddenly, she was alone on the bed, no trace of the angel aside from her flushed skin. She sat up, running her hand down her face and fixing her clothes.

"Ahem." Sam sat up, a smirk affixed to his face. "Nothing's going on between you and Castiel, huh?"

"Not really." Marion answered, shame causing further flushing of her skin.

"Yeah, that's why you were just dry humping like teenagers and you've got a fuckin' hickey?"

Marion cursed silently and headed for the bathroom. "There are rules, Sammy."

"Rules he's obviously breaking." Sam stood and followed her into the bathroom as she pulled out her make-up bag and went to work minimizing the four small hickeys the angel left on her.

"Probably not for much longer. You saw how fast he disappeared, right? And... I can't let him end up like they were gonna do to Anna. I just can't be that selfish and I can't let him be that reckless." Marion looked at her little brother in the mirror. "Don't tell Dean about this. Cas respects Dean and Dean likes him and I don't want him to go psycho that... this happened. Especially since it's not gonna happen again."

Sam smiled, before kissing the top of her head. "Yeah, all right. Make sure you get those hickeys covered, though."

"Please. I'm a master of covering bruises. These little hickeys are nothing compared to the marks Dad left on me. You remember ever seeing _any_ of those?"

Sam shrugged, then leaned against the wall. "Kinda think you guys should have at it, you know? At least once. Rules be damned."

"Excuse me?" Marion pulled a powder from her bag and went searching for a brush.

"You and Cas. I mean, you're both pretty much virgins, awkward sexually, you could teach each other. Just let your bodies do their things."

"Sam, I don't need to tell you how awkward it is to get sex advice from my little brother, do I?"

"Come on. I know you're, like, a thousand years older than me, but I kinda know what I'm talking about."

Marion chuckled, turning to Sam and punching him lightly in the arm. "I'm sure you know what you're talking about, jackass, but... I think we're both better off if we don't, you know?"

"Okay, well, don't bitch if you die a virgin." Sam smirked as he passed her to go flop back onto the bed.

**************

Coming back to Bobby's house was always like coming home for the Winchesters. Bobby greeted them at the door, wrapping an arm around Marion as she dropped her bag at his feet. The smell of her concealer/foundation/color correction combo must've caught his attention because, as Sam walked in with two duffels, Bobby flipped down the collar of her red plaid and examined the barely-visible dots of discolored skin. Her brother snickered as she pulled her shirt tight against her skin. Dean walked in and the eyes came to him. "What?"

"Nothing." Marion dismissed, quickly, grabbing her bag and heading for the laundry room.

An hour later, as Dean fixed the back window of his Baby and Sam disappeared somewhere else, Marion fixed herself a cup of coffee. Bobby entered his kitchen and stared at her until she acknowledged his presence. She just turned and stared back. "We gonna talk about that bit of teenaged nostalgia on yer neck?" His voice was amused, his eyes twinkling.

She sighed and took a sip. "Just an encounter with another member of the 'Way, way,  _way_ too old to still be virgins' club. And, before you ask, still a member of that club."

"And what, you ain't tellin' Dean 'cause you think he'll give you shit about it?"

"No, I'm afraid Dean will give  _him_ Hell for it." Bobby raised an eyebrow. She leaned against the sink and shook her head. "It was Castiel."

"So, you were neckin' with an angel?" Bobby's amusement was through the roof.

"I were, and it'll never happen again, so..."

"Gotta ask, what's wrong with humans? You don't ever seem to date normal guys. First the demon, now this."

"Hey. I didn't date Fergus... And I'm not dating Cas. I'm just meant to be a spinster, I guess, Bobby. Hunter life isn't good for relationships."

"'Meant to be a spinster', huh? You know Garth would date you in a second."

Marion chuckled. He had an adorable crush on her that began when she saved his life from a wendigo. She was just back on her feet after getting out of Hell. Sam and Dean were chasing that ghost ship that Chuck had lamented as poor writing and Bobby was in Texas looking into reports of vampires, so when the call came in he tossed it off to her. There was no one else. He told her, "Just make sure Garth makes it out of the woods safe. I'll send yer brothers to kill the thing later." Marion was tired of feeling like an invalid. 95 pounds or not, she refused to leave it alone. She grabbed blowtorches and flammables and a machete and headed out. Garth had looked completely enamored when she killed the wendigo and pulled him out of the woods in North Dakota. He was still prone to stumbling over his words when they spoke.

"Yeah. I know, but... with everything that has happened... it's just..." She took another sip of coffee. "I'm this weird combination of too scary for a normal man, too vanilla for a hunter man and Garth... who would probably be the only one who'd _get_ me... I'm afraid I'd break him."

"Now yer makin' excuses."

"I might be. I don't even know, anymore."

Bobby sighed and started out of the kitchen. "Well, girl, you get yerself a boyfriend or I'm gonna set you up on a hunting date with Garth."

"I think you're getting old enough that I can kick your ass, old man."

"Yeah, you just try it, ya idjit."

**************************************

It was perfect. The sun on her face, the beer in her hand, the slight breeze coming off of the river. This wasn't her dream. It was too nice. She walked down the dock and sat on the wood, letting her feet hang off into the water. "They bitin'?"

"Not yet, but does it really matter?" Dean asked. He smiled and looked around his idyllic scene. "You shoulda brought a stick."

She considered conjuring one, an easy feat for her, but shook her head. "Nah. I'm good." She took a deep breath and raised her beer. "This is nice." Dean picked up his beer and touched its neck to hers.

She chuckled and began to hum. "Sittin' in the mornin' sun. I'll be sittin' when the evenin' come."

"Watchin' the ships roll in. Then I-" Dean picked up.

"-watch 'em roll away again. I'm sittin' on the dock of the bay. Watchin' the tide roll away. Ooh, I'm sittin' on the dock of the bay. Wastin' time." The twins harmonized. Marion leaned her head on Dean's free arm. Things were good. The rest of the world might be falling apart, but with them, things were good. "I left my home Georgia. Headed for the Frisco bay. 'Cause I've had nothing to live for. And look like nothin's gonna come my way."

Castiel suddenly appeared beside Dean. "We need to talk." 

Dean tensed and Marion sat up. "I'm dreaming, aren't I?" Dean asked.

"It's not safe here. Someplace more private."

"More private? We're _inside_ my head."

"Exactly. Your sister and I aren't the only ones with access. Someone could be listening." His tone was worried and caused Marion to stand.

"Cas, what's wrong?" She asked, taking a step forward.

"Meet me here." Castiel ignored her and handed a folded piece of paper to Dean. "Go now." He disappeared. The twins looked at each other, then Dean flipped open the paper.

"All right. Wake up!" Marion pushed Dean into the water, prompting both of them to wake up.

"Thanks, a lot." Dean groaned, sitting up.

"It worked, didn't it? Come on." Marion stood from her spot on the floor and threw a pillow at Sam. "Wake up. We gotta go."

*****************************

They walked into the warehouse, flashlights sweeping the corridor. "Well, what did he say, Dean? What was so important?" Sam sounded irritated.

"If I knew, would we be here?"

Marion led them up a set of stairs to a completely destroyed area. "What the hell?"

"It looks like a bomb went off." Sam commented as sparks flew ahead of them.

"There was a fight here." Dean concluded.

"Between who?"

Marion swept her flashlight along the room, marveling at the damage. "Check it out." Dean pulled her attention to a wall with a blood sigil. "Look familiar?"

"Yeah, it does."

"Enochian Sigil." Marion confirmed.

"Anna used something like that to wish the angels back to the cornfield."

"So, what? Cas was fighting angels?"

"I don't know." Dean muttered.

"He _was_ afraid of someone paying too much attention to your dreams." Marion turned around to sweep her flashlight over the rest of the rubble. Her heart stopped as her light fell on the still body of Castiel.

Dean ran for the body. "Cas? Cas. Hey, Cas?" Dean shook the man, who woke with a start. He wasn't blue, anymore.

"What's...? What's...? What's going on?"

"Just take it easy. Take it easy." Dean instructed.

"Oh, oh." The voice was higher pitch than Castiel's gravel.

"Cas, you okay?" Sam asked.

"Not Cas." Marion stepped back from the men as the trench-coated man stood and looked around confused.

"Castiel. I'm not Castiel. It's me."

"Who's 'me'?" Sam asked.

"Jimmy. My name's Jimmy." The man responded.

"Where the hell is Castiel?" Dean growled.

Jimmy shook his head. "He's gone."

"Gone?" Sam asked, confused.

"Gone, Sam. There is no celestial presence within him. Jimmy, it is wonderful to meet you, let's get out of the dilapidated building." Marion grabbed his arm and began to guide the man toward the stairs.

"Uh, yeah." He let himself be moved. "Uh, can we get something to eat? I'm starving."

******************

Marion stood near the door, watching Jimmy scarf down his food. "You mind slowing down? You're gonna give me angina." Dean complained.

"I'm hungry." He had a mouthful of food, but he didn't seem to care.

"When's the last time you ate?" Sam asked.

"I don't know. Months."

"Angels don't eat." Marion muttered, looking away from him as he continued to devour the food with a series of satisfied sounds.

"What the hell happened back there?" Sam tried to move the conversation back to the point at hand.

"All I remember is a flash of light and I, uh... I woke up and I was just, you know, like, me again."

"So, what? Cas just ditched out of your meat suit?" Dean asked.

Jimmy took another bite of burger. "I really don't know."

"You remember anything about being possessed? Anything at all?" Sam asked. He threw a sideways glance at Marion, who ignored it.

"Yeah, bits and pieces." Jimmy answered. "The clearest memories are of, uh, Marion. I mean, angel inside of you, it's kinda like being chained to a comet. Comet just slowed down a bit when he was with you."

Marion let out a shaky breath as her brothers stared her down. She cleared her throat. "He liked the silence of my space." She quoted.

"Well, it was the calmest he ever was. Clearest memories."

"Well..." Dean turned away from his sister, intent to ask her about that later. "Chained to a comet, that doesn't sound like much fun."

"Understatement." Jimmy confirmed.

"Cas said he wanted to tell us something. Please, tell me you remember that." Sam asked.

Jimmy shook his head. "Sorry."

"Come on. What _do_ you know?" Dean asked.

Jimmy looked off into the space between the brothers. "My name is Jimmy Novak. I'm from Pontiac, Illinois. I have a family. I was a very devout man, you know, and I... think that's why he chose me. I only know about me, really. I don't know any of Castiel's stuff."

Sam and Dean stood. "You, uh, finish your food, man." Dean said as they walked out of the motel room.

Marion leaned against the back of the Impala as her brothers looked worried. "So, what do we do?" Sam finally asked.

"What do you mean? The guy's got a family. We buy him a bus ticket, send him home." Dean asked.

"I don't know about that. Guys, he's the only lead we got."

"He doesn't know anything." Marion reasoned.

"Are you 100 percent about that?" Sam challenged.

"You think he's lying? What, you wanna go Guantanamo on the guy?"

"Dean, maybe _he_ doesn't even know what he knows."

"Huh?" Dean grunted.

"Maybe he's got more bits and pieces than he thinks he does." Marion agreed.

"I say, at least we get him to Bobby's. Maybe all he needs is hypnosis or a psychic. Or, hell, maybe Cas will just drop back into him."

"I don't know, guys." Dean was wary.

"Dean, back there, that was angel-on-angel violence. Now, I don't know what's going on, but it's big. And we can't just let the only lead we got just skip out." Sam reasoned. Dean shook his head. "What?"

"You remember when our job was _helping_ people? Like, getting them back to their families?"

"You think I don't want to help him? I'm just being realistic. I mean, hell, we're doing him a favor." Sam countered.

"How??" The twins asked.

"If we want to question the guy, you can damn well bet the demons do, too."

Dean sighed in defeat. Marion put a hand up. "It might come easier from a lighter touch. Gimme five." She responded, walking toward the room.

"Hey, Jimmy. How're you doin', Jimmy?" Marion closed the door, lightly, behind her.

"I'm a little restless, actually."

"Jimmy, can you take a seat?"

"You keep using my name." He took a seat at the table.

"Yeah." She chuckled at herself. "I guess, it makes it easier for me to remember that you aren't Castiel. I mean, just the way you talk is different, the way you hold yourself. But, calling you 'Jimmy'... that helps me." She sat in the seat Sam was in and scooted it a little away from him.

"That must be weird. How close you were with Castiel and now... I'm _not_ him, anymore."

Marion swallowed. "Um, we... weren't... ahem, it's not a big deal. I knew you were in there, knew this might happen someday. Anyway..."

"You know, he really has a thing for you. He watched you sleeping a lot."

"Uh..." Marion's brain refused to find its words so she sighed. "We need to talk about your family, Jimmy. About you going home."

"Yeah. I can't wait to see Claire and Amelia."

"Yeah. Y-you c-can't, yet." She stuttered her words.

"I can't, what?"

Her brothers entered the room. "Go home." She responded as Jimmy stood.

"The hell are you talking about, I can't go home?"

"There's a good chance you have a bull's-eye on your back."

"What?! From _who_?!"

Dean looked at Sam, who was sitting on the table next to Marion. "Demons."

"Come on, that's crazy. What do they want with me?"

"I don't know, information, maybe?"

"I don't know anything." Jimmy argued.

"We know, but-" Marion started.

"Look, I'm done, okay? With demons, angels, all of it. I just want to go home." Jimmy stepped to Dean.

"We understand."

"I don't think that you _do_ understand. I've been shot and stabbed and healed, and my body has been dragged all over the Earth. By some miracle, I'm out, and I am done. I've given enough, okay?"

Sam stood. "Look, all we're saying is that until we figure this out, this safest place is with us."

"How long?" Jimmy asked.

"We'll cross that bridge when we get to it." Sam said. Jimmy shook his head in exasperation and started for the door. Sam intercepted him, easily.

"Where are you going?" Dean asked.

"To see my wife and daughter, okay?"

"No, you're not. You're just going to put those people in danger." Sam growled.

"So, what, now I'm a prisoner?" Jimmy whined.

Sam nodded, slightly. "Harsh way to put it."

"It's temporary, Jimmy. We promise." Marion put a hand on each man's chest, pushing them away from each other. "Why don't you go lie down, Jimmy? Things will seem better in the morning light."

Jimmy sighed and sat down on one of the beds. Dean swatted Marion's arm. "Is it my turn on the bed, or yours?"

"If we're taking equal turns, D., it's mine. But go ahead, I'll take the floor."

Dean happily bounced onto the bed. "You good to take first watch, Sammy?"

Sam nodded. "Yeah. You guys, get some rest."

Marion put her head on her duffel bag as Jimmy got under the blankets of his bed and Dean covered himself in his Army jacket. She pulled her hands up and closed her eyes. _*Castiel, please. If you can hear me... we need you.*_ She waited, then sighed and turned over to get more comfortable. "Night, all."

"Yeh. Night." Dean was already halfway asleep.


	22. Keyword: secrets

"Shit!" The twins both jolted at Sam's voice, pulling them out of their dreams. 

"Whah?" Dean yawned.

"Where's Jimmy?" Marion stood, looking at the empty pile of bedding.

"I, I don't know. I left for five fuckin' minutes earlier and I didn't check him when I got back because I thought he was asleep, but he must've slipped out hours ago."

Dean scoffed and rolled off the bed, heading for the bathroom while Sam began to rush around the room, grabbing hex bags and clothes from their scattered locations.

"You lost Jimmy? Smooth." Marion stood and stretched. The sink turned on as the twins grabbed their toothbrushes and began to brush their teeth.

"Guys! Would you hurry up?" Sam shouted. Dean walked out of the bathroom, still brushing, one hand in his pocket and chuckled at the tallest Winchester. "Sorry, uh, this is funny to you?"

"Mr. Big-Bad-Prison-Guard, Jimmy McMook give you the slip? Yeah, it's pretty funny. What were you doing, anyway?"  


Sam sighed. "I was getting a Coke."

"Was it a _refreshing_ Coke?"

"Can we just go, please?" Sam asked, exasperated. 

Marion spit into the sink and rinsed her toothbrush, walking out and grabbing her duffel. "Could've happened to any of us. I mean, it wouldn't've happened to _me_ but, it could." She joked, pulling up her bag and heading out the motel room door.

**************

Marion sat with her head against the passenger side of the car, listening to the rain as she looked through pictures on her phone. There were a few new ones, selfies taken over the weeks since she and Dean buried the hatchet, and she was happy to see how excited they both looked just to be together. Pony and Dean. It was a good feeling.

A fumble of her fingers had her looking at the password-protected folder that housed her pictures of Crowley. She couldn't bring herself to delete the folder, so she just ignored its existence and never flipped far enough in her phone to see it. She was contemplating unlocking the folder and looking through the pictures when Anna appeared next to her.

"Hey, guys."

"Ahh! Jeez!" Dean swerved into oncoming traffic, before correcting.

"Smooth." Anna said as Marion looked away from her, a bit. 

"You ever try calling ahead?" Dean griped.

"I like the element of surprise." Anna responded, nonchalantly.

"Well, you look terrific." Dean looked into the backseat as Anna rolled her eyes a bit.

"Um, yeah, not the most appropriate time, Dean. You let Jimmy get away?"

"Talk to Ginormo here." 

"Sam. You seem different." Anna looked at him, analytically.  


"Me? I don't know. Heh. A haircut?"

"That's not what I'm talking about." She gave Sam a look that surely meant something to him, before turning her head to the other woman in the car. "Are you all right?"

"Yeah. Um, I'm fine. Just letting my eyes get used to the light." She whispered.

"Ah. Castiel said-"

"Sh!"

It was a single, low breath that was over in less than a blink but the angel understood, quieting her words and moving away from Marion. She turned her attention back to the men in the front seat. "So, what'd Jimmy tell you? He remember anything?"

"Why? What's going on?"

"It's Cas. He got sent back home. Well, more like _dragged_ back."

"To Heaven? That's not a good thing?" Dean asked as his twin closed her eyes in worry.

"No. That's a very _bad_ thing. Painfully, awfully bad. He must have seriously pissed someone off."

"Cas said he had something to tell me. Something important."

"What?" Anna pressed.

"I don't know."

"Does Jimmy know?"

"I don't think so."

"You don't think so? Whatever it is, it's huge." She lowered her voice to a level easy for Marion to hear. "Bigger than that, don't worry." She leaned forward. "You gotta find out for sure."

"That's why we're going after Jimmy." Sam added.

"That's why you shouldn't have let him go in the first place. He's... probably dead already." Anna looked down, then disappeared.

*****************

It should have been just a gas stop, but of course things couldn't be that simple. Not for Marion, who just wanted to use the restroom and ended up with a demon blowing white powder into her face. "Call your brother and tell him that you are with the redhead angel. Working through other leads." The demon told her.

And she did. She did exactly what she was told. Dean questioned her, but she just ended the call and followed the demons to a warehouse. By the time she came out of whatever they blew into her face to make her so compliant, they had tied her to a chair and were injecting her with something. 

"Man, this is stupid. We should just kill her. One less hunter to fuck around with." 

"You heard the King. She's not to be harmed. If you wanna go against him, by all means, but I'm not going back to feeding the hounds. Every meatsuit I had for 20 years ended up Alpo and I can't do it again."

"Why drug her, though? I mean, that was some primo heroin we put up her arm."

"Lilith says she has some whammy that only works if she can focus. Shit was cheap. I ain't springin' for LSD for some bitch hunter."

"I don't know. She's kinda hot... if she weren't marked... and a fuckin' Winchester."

"You think that's hot? Slumped over and mumbling?"

"I mean, yeah. Physically, she's hot. The mumbling's getting kinda annoying, though. What the fuck is she saying?"

"I dunno. Sounds like another language."

"Ut inimicos sanctae Ecclesiae humiliare digneris, te rogamus, audi nos. Terribilis Deus de sanctuario suo. Deus Israhel ipse truderit virtutem et fortitudinem plebi Suae. Benedictus deus. Gloria patri."

"Shit!" Black smoke poured from the mouth of the closest demon as Marion slipped her hands from her binds. 

"You should have killed me." She growled, punching the demon who was left standing there. She wobbled on her feet, but managed to hit the demon with every swing. He threw his head back and smoked out of his meatsuit, leaving it to drop at Marion's feet.

"Well, I'm impressed. No one's performed a successful exorcism with that much heroin in their system since the '70s." A small voice said as Marion fell over.

"Jimmy Novak doesn't know anything."

"Well, excuse me if I want to make certain of that, my own self." The little brunette girl said, stepping up next to the hunter. "Huh, I really should have told them to be careful with their dosage. I think you're overdosing."

Watching Trainspotting had made her think ODing was like sinking, but no, Marion felt like she was spinning in a dizzying, nauseating trip down a toilet. She closed her eyes as Lilith disappeared, letting herself go. She was too tired to fight, anyway.

* _No, you are still needed.*_ Castiel's true voice cut through her opiate haze and a warmth enveloped her body. She opened her eyes to find herself bathed in light. And then, she was suddenly in an old, broken-down factory, behind a stack of pallets. * _Claire, my name is Castiel. I'm an angel of the Lord. I need you to allow me to use your body to save Dean and Sam. May I?_ * The light that was Castiel was suddenly contained as the sound of a gunshot went through the building. 

Marion stood, her body cleared of all of the influence of the drugs, and stepped toward the sound of fighting. She dropped to Jimmy's side, hand going over his gunshot wound as her brothers wrestled with demons and Castiel, wearing a little blond girl who must've been Jimmy's daughter, smote the one trying its best to kill her twin. 

Her stomach roiled with disgust as Sam stood up, blood painting his mouth and chin. He looked almost rabid as he plunged the knife into the demon's chest and stood. Marion couldn't see Dean's face from the floor but she was sure it mirrored her own as their little brother pulled the last demon from its vessel and the woman dropped to the ground. Her focus moved to Castiel, who walked over to Jimmy with determination, putting Claire's hand into his hair and making the dying man look at her.

"Of course we keep our promises. Of course you have our gratitude. You served us well. Your work is done. It's time to go home now. Your  _real_ home. You'll rest forever in the fields of the Lord." 

"No." He groaned.

"Rest now, Jimmy." Castiel insisted.

"No. Claire?" 

"She's with me now. She's chosen. It's in her blood, as it was in yours."

"You can't keep a _kid_ , Cas." Marion couldn't help but think of Lilith.

"Please, Castiel. Me. Jus-just take _me._ Take _me,_ please." Jimmy begged.

"I want to make sure you understand. You won't die... or age. If this last year was painful for you, picture a hundred, a thousand more like it."

Jimmy put his hand on Castiel's arm. "It doesn't matter. You take  _me._ Just take  _me._ "

Castiel seemed mildly conflicted before shrugging slightly and putting her hands on Jimmy's head. "As you wish." Light shot from Jimmy's eyes and mouth, but Marion was the only one able to see the shining blue-white grace flow from the child to the father. Claire slumped to the ground and Castiel stood, gunshot wound gone and clothing unsullied. Amelia gave a look to Castiel as he passed, then ran to her daughter's side, hugging her tightly. Marion followed the angel to stand by her brothers. 

When he turned to walk away, Dean called out to him. "Cas, hold up. What were you gonna tell me?"

"I learned my lesson while I was away, Dean. I serve  _Heaven._ " He emphasized. "I don't serve Man and I certainly don't serve  _you._ " His focus was on Dean, but his eyes flicked to Marion just before he turned away from the Winchesters and walked out of the factory. 

"What did they do to him?" Dean muttered to himself, before turning to Marion. "And where the hell were you?"

" _Not_ dying in a flophouse. Come on. Let's get _them_ home." 

************

Marion called Bobby while Dean and Sam were putting salt on all the entrances of the Novak home. "He's an addict. I should've seen it. That's why the dependence on Ruby. Why he protects her so fiercely. She's his dealer."

"What do we do?"

"Detox, right? Cold turkey, keep him away from demons 'til he kicks."

"We could lock 'im in the panic room. No demons touchin' him there." 

"That's perfect. Can you set it up, get him there?"

"Leave it to me, girl. See you in a few."

"See ya, Bobby."

The ride was tense, Sam waiting for the shoe to fall, Dean doing a piss-poor job of holding back his hurt...Marion lying in the backseat thinking about how close she came to dying, how many secrets she was _still_ keeping from her twin. Nothing so detrimental as an addiction to blood, but... she didn't want to keep secrets anymore.

"All right." Sam must've gotten tired of the anticipation. "Let's hear it."

"What?" Dean responded. Marion simply sat up.

"Drop the bomb, man. You saw what I did. Come on, stop the car, take a swing."

"I'm not gonna take a swing." 

"Then scream. Chew me out."

"We're not mad, Sam." Dean answered.

"Come on! You're not mad?"

"Nope." The twins chorused.

"Right. Look, at least let me explain myself." Sam wanted this fight. Probably been having it in his head for months.

"Don't. I don't care."

"You don't care?"

"What do you want me to say? That I'm disappointed? Yeah, I am. Of course, we are. But mostly, I'm just tired, man. I'm done. I'm just done."

Sam twisted in his seat to look at Marion, hoping for some support or maybe a bit of a fight from _her,_ but she just shook her head. "I'm not gonna fight you, either. I've been  _done_ a long time. Only been keeping it rolling for you guys and the prevention of the end of the world." 

Sam's cell phone rang as Marion lied back down in the back. With Castiel deciding he can't care and her baby brother about to go through detox from demon blood, she really did feel 'done'. But why did Cas save her? That couldn't have been a heavenly mandate, their thoughts for her were 'get out of the fucking way'. 

"Hey, Bobby. Well, what's going on?" Sam looked down at his phone as he hung up.

"What'd he say?" 

"Get to Sioux Falls, ASAP. Some Apocalypse shit."

"Dean?" Marion's voice was quiet but easily heard over the tense silence that followed.

"Yeah?"

"Will you please put on some music? Sabbath or Zeppelin, preferably." Sam leaned forward to grab the cassettes but Dean ignored him, grabbing a cassette from the floor near Sam's feet and popping it in. As Crazy Train started, Marion closed her eyes. "Thank you."

***********

Sam pounded on the door of the panic room for about 15 minutes before the sound stopped. Marion sat on the basement stairs, mind going over everything she needed to say to Dean and how, exactly, she was planning to say it all. Dean, meanwhile, was staring at the door, likely thinking through how to talk to their brother. He walked up to the heavy locked door and opened the little barred window.

"Okay. Let me out. This is not funny." Sam demanded.

"Damn straight."

"Dean, come on. This is crazy."

"No. Not until you dry out."

"Look, I'm sorry. I shouldn't have lied to you. Just open the door."

"You don't have to apologize. It's not your fault. It's not your fault that you lied to us over and over again. I get it now. You couldn't help it."

"I'm not some junkie." Sam seemed offended by the notion.

"Really? I guess I've just imagined how strung out you've been lately."

"You're actually trying to twist this into some kind of ridiculous drug intervention?"

"If it smells like a duck."

"Dean, I'm not drinking the demon blood for kicks. I'm getting strong enough to kill Lilith." Marion scoffed.

"Strong?"

"Yeah."

"This is about as far away from strong as you can get. Try weak. Try desperate. Pathetic." Dean spat.

"Killing Lilith is what matters. Or are you so busy being self-righteous you forgot about her?"

"Oh, Lilith's gonna die. Marion, Bobby and I will kill her. But not with you."

"You're not serious."

"Congrats, Sammy. You just bought yourself a benchwarmer seat to the apocalypse."

"Dean, look, no, wait..." Dean shut the window cover and walked toward the stairs. Marion stood and went to the door. It was her turn. She took a deep breath and opened the window. "Mare! Come on, you gotta let me out."

"No. That's not gonna happen. This is what's best, Sammy."

"You think this is what's best for me?"

"Not for you. For everyone. This way, we don't have to worry about you sneaking out while we're asleep to go get your fix." She cleared her throat. "Where's Ruby, Sam?"

He scoffed. "I'm not telling you that. You'll kill her."

"You're not telling me because you don't know. She hasn't been answering your calls. Ya know, it's a shitty dealer that lets a junkie get so strung out and illin' for a fix that he goes to another source."

"I'm not a junkie."

"Yeah, you are. That's not something you can argue when you're sucking down demon blood."

"I _have_ to! I have to kill Lilith."

"You aren't the one, Sam."

"Dean can't do it, Mare! He's not strong enough!"

"You poor, dumb bastard. You're supposed to be the _smart_ one! You really have no clue of the dynamics of this family, do you?!" She slammed her hand against the door. " _I_ am Atlas holding up Dean, the world, and you are the men who couldn't even make fire without help. We hold _you_ up. You aren't the one to end this just because some _demon_ tells you that you can do it. Ruby has no clue. I bet she's never mentioned the 'Wildcard', probably as clueless as you are about it. You think you're gonna use those powers to end the Apocalypse? The powers given to you by _Azazel,_ the demon who killed our mother and sent me to  _Hell!?_ " 

She couldn't hold back the humorless laugh that rocked her. "Why'd he give you those powers, again? Something about leading Lucifer's Armies? You weren't given demon blood as a baby so that you could  _kill_ demons. You were supposed to be their King! You need to get off this shit and stop fucking around with demons because you are playing right into what Azazel wanted you to be."

"No, that's not-"

Marion sighed deeply and stepped back. "Just let this work, bro. Once you're clean, we can discuss this like adults." 

"Don't leave me here!" Sam cried as she shut the window and walked upstairs where Dean sat in the kitchen drinking straight from a bottle of whiskey.

She sat at the table across from her twin, trying to think of how to start. "I can see them." Marion whispered, staring at the bottle in her twin's hand.

"What, the demons? Yeah, I know. Since we were kids and what's-his-name blew sulphur in your face."

"Not just them; the angels, too. I can see grace and I can hear them talking. When Castiel blew out all the glass at The Astoria, I could hear him trying to talk to you, and I could see the latent grace in Anna when she was human. It's how I knew Jimmy wasn't Cas. I never said anything because I don't know exactly why and I know there are more important things to deal with." 

"Why now, then?"

"Because I don't want any more secrets. Sammy, what _he's_ been hiding... I can't hide anymore. So, I have to tell you that I can stop time." She said quickly, before she lost her nerve. 

Dean turned to her fully, eyes disbelieving. "What?"

"It's not  _really_ stopping time, but... the sulphur, I guess, or how long I've been alive, or some combo of the two... whatever, _why_ ever I can perceive the things I can, it gives me the ability to make people feel like the world has stopped. They stop moving, like they've been paused."

"No." Dean shook his head, before taking another gulp of whiskey. "People would notice."

"They haven't. I mean, Cas knows 'cause I left him unfrozen the first time I did it and Lilith figured it out afterwards, that's why she had her demons kidnap me and pump me full of heroin, which I almost OD'd on, but you didn't catch it when I froze _you_."

"Demons almost killed you with heroin?! Are you okay?" 

"I'm fine. Cas saved me. I should also tell you that I made out with Castiel."

"What?!" Dean sat forward, dropping the bottle to the floor at his feet. 

"We got close when I was living in New Orleans. I guess I was a respite from the stress of his angel duties. I was always alone so there was never any conflict around me."

"The, uh, 'silence of your space'." Dean nodded in understanding.

"Right. He spent a lot of time watching me sleep and I spent a lot of time pretending I didn't _know_ he was watching me sleep. He started coming to see me almost every day and we... we were crushing on each other, but... There are rules. Angels can't... I had this dream when we were at Sandover Steel. He was there, like _really_ there, and he kissed me. I was pretty sure that was the only way I would ever..." She sighed, running her hand down her face. "When I froze Lilith and Sam in Kripke's Hollow, Cas kissed me in real life and then he showed up the next night and he told me that he couldn't be around me anymore. Said he couldn't be an 'effective soldier for Heaven's Army' because he couldn't focus. We ended up on the bed and I'm not gonna get into details but, I ended up with hickeys and nothing else and that's the end of it. He got dragged back home and I'm sure he's not going to touch me again, so it's not a big deal but I said no more secrets." She breathed heavily as she finished her rant.

"Wow."

"Yeah."

"Well, as someone who's gotten freaky with a seraph, you, uh, you ain't missin' anything. Not, at all, the most mind-blowing sex I've ever had."

Marion chuckled. "That's saying a lot."

"You got anything else you wanna share?"

Marion sighed, then laughed. "Chuck hit on me. Called me the woman of his dreams. He actually seemed kinda jealous of Cas."

"Well, maybe you give him a call next time we're out that way. He's slimy but he _is_ a prophet of the Lord."

"Yeah, which puts him way too close to the God side of the equation. Come on, D. I'm a centuries-old pagan whose lungs are lined with demon sulphur. There's no way Heaven lets their prophet bed down with me." Marion reached across and grabbed the bottle at Dean's feet. "Guess I'm destined for spinsterhood. Unless I wanna break down and go out with Garth, which... Nah."

Dean sighed. "So, that's... it? Nothing else you've been keeping from me?"

Marion looked down at the bottle before taking a swig. "I'm not sure exactly what it means, but... You know how Heaven's got its plan for you?"

"Yeah. Painfully aware." Dean leaned forward and grabbed the bottle back.

"And Hell had some plan for Sam, even if Lilith's kinda standing in the way of it, or whatever."

"Yeah?" 

"Azazel called me 'The Wildcard'. He said I could make or break the plan. Not just... just his plan, though, I could fuck up Heaven's plan, too. 'Cause... You know, it's _supposed_ to be you, but it doesn't  _have_ to be."

"What?" Genuine confusion and annoyance flooded Dean's face.

"Fergus said that the 'Wildcard' thing meant that I could sub in for you; you  _or_ Sammy. I could take over, make different choices, or just keep you from having to be the one to do whatever it is that Heaven thinks you need to do to stop this. It doesn't have to be you."

"What? But, Cas said..."

"Castiel is going by what his superiors tell him and Zachariah's response to me was 'Get the fuck out of the way'. They put all their effort into you, Dean. I'm just a inconvenient variable, something they don't know how to control. Azazel wanted to kill me, Zachariah probably does, too, so I can't fuck up their plans."

Dean took a deep breath. "When were you planning to let me know that you could do this?"

"I wasn't. If I had to step up, D., I was just gonna do it. I wasn't going to ask, I wasn't going to offer. I was just going to do it, save you from whatever servitude to Heaven means. But I was gonna wait until I  _knew_ what servitude to Heaven means."

"Let me... make sure I'm... gettin' this. You've been  _actively_ planning to sacrifice yourself for me since way back when you were still talking to Fergus and you weren't even gonna _say_ anything about it?"

"I'm saying something now." She responded, quietly.

"Mare..." Dean sighed, looking at his feet. "You can't. I forbid it and I'm not trying to be a jerk when I say that. You have given up way too much for me, so if it comes down to sacrifice, that's gonna be on me."

"Okay. Okay, Dean. Heaven doesn't want me, anyway."

" _Someone_ from Heaven does." Dean chuckled. "Seriously, though... Cas?"

"It just happened." Marion stood, walking to the fridge for a beer. 

"Think that's why they dragged him home? Why he's bein' a dick again?"

"Anna said 'no'. Said it was bigger than that, but..." She dropped her weight down into her chair and twisted the cap off her beer. "One minute he's got his hand down my pants, then he's dragged back home and now he's talking about how he doesn't serve us."

"Well, maybe _you_ should be serving _him_. Some of that prayer position, down on your knees-" Dean barked a laugh as Marion's boot kicked out and collided with his chair. "Aw, come on. I think the two of you could benefit from a little apocalypse delight. I mean, sex is just...   _awesome."_

_"_ Yeah. I had to figure there was a reason why you spent so much of your time and energy getting it."

"You say that like it takes effort." 

"Right, well..."

"Probably wouldn't be too hard for you, either. I mean, you're  _my_ twin."

"I never said it was hard, D. I get hit on  _all_ the time. But I'm off-putting and rude with dozens of emotional issues and I don't think I can get past those hang-ups to do the one-night stand thing."

"So... It's Garth or Chuck. Never met Garth, but I've heard the stories. Think you'd end up in trouble with _that_ dumbass."

"Yeah. No. No, I'm just gonna have to  _not_." 

"Well, that's just sad." 

Marion shook her head as the sound of Sam screaming hit their ears. Dean flinched, his automatic response to their brother in pain. He had to fight to stay in his seat. "It's better this way. It's... the  _only_ way." She stood, patting Dean on the shoulder. "I'm gonna go get us some more Hunter's Helper. Have the feeling we're gonna need it."

"Yeah, okay."

***********

When she returned from the liquor store, several brown bags full of glass bottles in her arms, Dean was in the scrap yard, shouting at the sky. "Castiel, get your ass down here! Come on, man!"

"What's... What's wrong? Is it Sam?" 

"It's the world. Lilith's been droppin' seals all over the country. We're at the end." 

Marion blinked at her brother for a moment before handing a bag to him and twisting the top off of a bottle of whiskey, gulping down several mouthfuls. "So, Lilith is... it's... Fuck."

"Yeah. I'm trying to get ahold of your boyfriend."

"Ha. I'm... What are you planning to do?"

"Bobby thinks Sam could pull it off. I mean... Think about Samhain. I have to... ask Cas if we're doing the right thing in there."

"It's not Sam. We are doing exactly the right thing, D. Lemme know when Cas tells you the same." She adjusted the bottles in her arms and stomped back toward the house. She dropped two bags on Bobby's desk and flopped down on his couch.

"You okay, girl?" Bobby asked, pulling the bottles out of the bags.

"No. I'm pissed, and terrified, fo-for myself and my brothers and the whole fucking world and... Sam can't do it. I don't think either of them can, Bobby." She wiped at her eyes as the old hunter came around his desk to stand over her. "I could do it. _I_  could do it. Cas even said he'd back me. 'Course that was before he got sent back to Heaven and Heaven isn't very impressed with my credentials, but... I could put an end to their stupid fighting. I could go find her right now. I could do it."

"Yeah? An' how would you do that?"

"Sam's not the only one who got fucked up from his time with a demon. All I need to do is be around her. Be around her without a bunch of heroin in my system. Then I can freeze her and stick her with Ruby's knife. I can do it."

"Freeze her? Heroin? Marion, what are you gabbing about?"

Marion closed her eyes. "I can freeze time, kinda. But that's... it doesn't matter. Because it's supposed to be Dean. The angels know this shit. The angels know more about us than  _we_ do. They know what they're doing."

"Yer just gonna gloss over the fact that _you_ got superpowers, too?"

"Not superpowers. I... I can't explain it, Bobby. But I'm older than you are and that's the probable cause." She stood. "But what's important, Bobby, is that I could fix it. I could kill her. Save Dean the trouble, save Sam's fragile psyche. Maybe I should."

"Marion." Bobby put a hand on her shoulder. "No. You've been through more than enough. You ain't the one any more than Sam is. If you think the angels know what they're doing, then you gotta let 'em do what they want."

Marion grabbed her bottle and took a deep gulp of it. "Right. Let the men-folk do their job."

********

Two hours later, Dean entered the house and looked between his drunk sister and his coffee drinking father-figure. "Cas finally showed." 

"Yeah?" Marion looked up at him with heavy lids. 

Dean leaned against the doorjamb of the study. "He said Sam doesn't have to have anything to do with it. Said they still think it's me and, uh, he had me, uh, give myself to the service of God and his angels. Swore to follow His will and word or whatever."

Bobby stood, arms crossed over his chest. "Correct me if I'm wrong, but you  _willingly_ signed up to be the angels' bitch?" Dean shot a glare at the man. "I'm sorry. You prefer 'sucker'? After everything you said about them,  _now_ you trust them?"

Dean turned and stalked into the library. "Come on, give me a little credit, Bobby. I've never trusted them  _less._ I mean, they come on like shady politicians from planet Vulcan."

"Then why in the hell did you-"

"Because what other option do I have? It's either trust the angels or let Sammy trust a _demon_!?"

Marion stood, whiskey coming off of her in waves. "You had an option. I'm a fucking option."

"I told you no. The angels don't even  _want_ you!" Marion glared at him, before stumbling into the kitchen. "You hear that?"

"Yeah. That's a little too much nothing." Bobby confirmed as they ran for the basement. Marion walked into the scrapyard, hoping to find comfort in the grace mark where Cas and Dean spoke. Instead, she just felt empty as she stared at the grace. One brother a junkie, the other bending over for Heaven. Her love life a joke, her family life a mess. Looking at the mark, she was filled with a desire to smoke.

Instead of bowing to her drunken depression, she went back into the house, trudging down the basement stairs to stand in the doorway as Dean and Bobby handcuffed Sam to the cot in the middle of the panic room. "What happened?"

"Seizure... I guess you'd call it. Gettin' thrown all over the damn room." Bobby clicked the cuff closed, then moved past her out of the panic room. 

"He looks bad."

"That your professional opinion?" Dean growled, pushing past her, too.

Marion grabbed his arm, stopping him just outside the iron door. "Don't. Don't do this, Dean. I gave you an out. I gave you an option. I could have taken the burden off of you. Sam wouldn't have any reason to drink blood anymore if I swore my allegiance to God and His people. I was willing to do that... for you. You don't get to be all pissy and rude with me."

"I couldn't let you do that for me! After everything I did to you, everything I let Dad get away with, if I allowed you to give up your stupid pagan religion and your free will for me, what kind of brother would I be?" 

"Fine. I get it. But don't push me away, or push me down. You've done enough of that in our lives."

"Right. Lock the door." He said, before stomping up the stairs.

By the time she made it back upstairs, Dean was sitting on the couch, worry painting his face, and Bobby was standing at his desk looking uncomfortable. "I'm gonna ask one more time. Are we  _absolutely_ sure we're doing the right thing?" Bobby finally asked.

Dean looked completely confused. "Bobby, you saw what was happening to him down there." He stood, walking in front of Bobby's desk. "The demon blood is _killing_ him."

"No, it isn't.  _We_ are."

"What?"

"I'm sorry. I can't bite my tongue any longer. _We're_ killing him. Keepin' him locked up down there. This 'cold-turkey' thing isn't working. If... If he doesn't get what he needs...  _soon..._   Sam's not gonna last much longer."

Dean was teary as he looked from Bobby to Marion and back. "No." He shook his head. "I'm not giving him demon blood. I won't do it."

"And if he _dies_?"

"Then, at least he dies human!" Dean shouted. He sighed, looking at his feet. "I would die for him in a second, but I won't let him do this to himself. I can't. I guess I found my line. I won't let my brother turn into a monster."

Bobby looked to Marion, likely to get a different answer, but she shook her head. "I don't want him dead either, Bobby, but... He did this, not us. We could have done the slow and steady thing, the demon methadone method, but he didn't give us that opportunity. We're at the end, guys." She walked toward the kitchen, set to make a pot of coffee. "Lilith is down to her last few seals, if not the last, the angels have finally got tired of jerking Dean around and just made him swear fealty. Lucifer rising is an all-too-present reality. We don't have the time to baby Sam into recovery. This works, or we lose him, but we're gonna lose everything in the apocalypse, anyway."

"That's kinda cold, girl." 

"Yeah. It is. But it's true. Look, there is no way in Hell that Ruby is trustworthy, that she's not setting him up like Fergus was doing to me or how Azazel was doing a few years ago. We keep him down there, maybe we get him clean and we all stop that final seal together. Or, he dies and we stop the final seal without him. Or, we _all_ die. Those are the options and, I'm tellin' you, not much to do but wait and see." 

Dean and Bobby both waited a moment before nodding. 

***********

Marion stared at the empty panic room. Dean was tending to Bobby upstairs, but she had chosen to investigate the jailbreak. Cas' grace marks covered the door, the lock and the cuffs on the cot. Castiel had done this, let Sam out. "You see anything?!" Dean called down into the basement. 

She hesitated. If Castiel did this, it's because he was ordered to. What does that mean? "No! There's nothing! Let's go!" She called, taking the stairs two at a time and rushing for the Impala.

They drove in angry silence, Marion forcing herself into a light sleep. As soon as she entered the dreamscape, Dean still driving, in the astral _and_ the physical, she called Castiel into the car. The angel appeared in the dream-pala's backseat. "What?"

She twisted to look at him. "Tell me why I'm in a car chasing down my brother."

Castiel tilted his head, slightly. "I assume because he escaped."

Marion leaned forward. "I told Dean everything yesterday. I told him about my ability, about the fact that I can see angels and demons, I told him about _us._ I said I didn't want to keep secrets anymore. So, tell me why I lied when I looked at that panic room and saw your grace  _all_ over it? Why didn't I tell him that _you_ let Sam out?"

"Perhaps you see the big picture of-"

"Bullshit! Cas, tell me what is happening!"

Castiel looked down. "I can't."

"Of course, you can! Castiel, please." She begged. "This is  _me._  I'm the reasonable Winchester, even Zachariah said so. Tell me."

"You should go back to Bobby's. What's going to happen, it  _needs_ to happen."

"You tell me what is going on, or I'm going to trap you here." She threatened.

Castiel sat forward, his hand gliding up her arm. "I do not have time to play games, Marion. This is serious."

"I know it is." She whispered, trying to ignore the fact that he was touching her. "But I have to know. I'm serious, too."

"I can't tell you and, unless you want a battalion of angels to invade your dreams, you will release me."

Marion looked down at his hand on her arm. "This is the end, isn't it? Lilith is about to win, isn't she?" He didn't answer, so she shook her head. "Whatever they did to you, I'm sorry for any part I had in putting you there. I'll let you leave, but... We are _not_ going back to Bobby's."

Castiel disappeared and Marion blinked awake. "Oh, how was Dreamland?" Dean asked, sarcastically.

"Fruitless." She sat up straight. "I was trying to get Cas to visit, talk to me, but he didn't show. Where are we?"

"Almost to Cold Spring, North Dakota. Tracked him to a four-star hotel. Boy thinks if he goes opposite of our norm, big and opulent and stealing flashy cars, we won't find him. Motherfucker got the honeymoon suite. Bet he's up there with that demon bitch right now." He growled. He shook his head and took a deep breath. "We're about half hour out. You fully rested?"

"I told you. I was sleeping for a reason. I'm not tired."

************

They snuck up into the top floor of the hotel and hid as Sam left the Honeymoon Suite. They quickly rushed to the door, Dean pulling the knife and slashing at the demon as Marion covered the exit. The two locked arms, Dean attempting to stab Ruby with her own knife and Ruby using her demonic strength to prevent that. She flung his arm away as Sam rushed through the door, knocking Marion to the ground as he ran to rescue the demon. 

"No! Let her go!" Sam exclaimed, flinging Dean toward the bed. He stood in front of the demon, protectively, as his siblings pulled themselves up off the floor where he'd thrown them in his rush to save Ruby. "Just take it easy."

"Well, it must've been  _some_ party you two had going, considering how hard you tried to keep us from crashing it. Well, solid try, but here we are." Dean growled.

"Dean, I'm glad you guys are here. Look. Let's just talk about this." Sam said, softly.

"Soon as she's dead, we can talk all you want." Marion growled.

"Ruby, get out of here." Sam ordered. 

"No, she's not going anywhere." Dean said, the twins moving forward to stop her. Sam grabbed Marion's wrist and stepped in Dean's way as Ruby ran out the door. Dean looked hurt by the obstruction as Marion pulled her wrist from her brother's grasp. "She's poison, Sam."

"It's not what you think."

"Look what she did to you. I mean, she up and vanishes weeks at a time, leaves you cracking out for another hit..." Marion's eyes were begging for Sam to listen as she reasoned with him.

"She was looking for Lilith." Sam argued.

"That is French for manipulating your ass ten ways from Sunday."

"You're wrong, Dean."

"He's not. Sam, you're lying to yourself." Marion pleaded.

"I just _want_ you to be okay. You would do the same for me. You know you would."

"Just listen." Sam said, looking down at the knife in his hand and tossing it on the bed. "Just listen for a second. We got a lead on a demon close to Lilith. Come with us, both of you. We can do it together."

"That sounds great." Sam looked relieved until Dean continued. "As long as it's you and us. Demon bitch is a deal breaker. You kiss her goodbye, we can go right now."

"I can't." Dean turned away, nodding in sad understanding. "Dean, I need her to help me kill Lilith. I know you can't wrap your head around it, but maybe one day you guys'll understand. I'm the only one who can do this, Dean."

Dean turned back around, shaking his head as Marion bit her tongue, literally. "No, you're not the one who's gonna do this."

"Right, that's right, I forgot. The angels think it's you."

"You don't think I can?"

"No. You can't. You're not strong enough."

"And who the hell are you?" Marion snapped.

"I'm being practical here. We're doing what needs to be done."

"Yeah? You're not gonna do a single damn thing." Dean growled.

"Stop bossing me around, Dean. Look. My whole life, you take the wheel, you call the shots, and I trust you because you are my brother. Now, I'm asking you, for once, trust  _me._ "

"No." The twins answered together before Dean continued. "You don't know what you're doing, Sam."

"Yes, I do." Sam insisted.

"Then, that's worse."

"Why? Look, I'm telling you-"

"Because it's not something that you're doing, it's what you are! It means-"

"What? No. Say it." Marion looked away from her brother's teary eyes.

"It means you're a monster." Dean finished.

Sam nodded. He'd expected that answer. Marion stepped up as Sam's fist drove into Dean's face. Dean hit the floor, but stood quickly, squaring his shoulders. Marion moved between them putting her hands up. "We didn't come here to-" A backhand from Sam sent her flying across the room.

"Shut up, Marion. Why are you even here?!" Dean let his anger out on Sam's face as he brought his right fist across rapidly, followed by his left and then a right to his stomach.

Marion rolled from her back to her hands and knees. The impact had forced the wind from her lungs. By the time she got to her feet, Sam had gotten the upper hand, putting Dean into a mirror, then through the decorative partition between the rooms and into the glass coffee table, shattering it. Marion jumped to Dean's rescue when Sam dropped down onto a coughing, disoriented Dean and wrapped his hands around his throat. She punched him, twice in rapid fire, but he barely flinched as he allowed Dean to breathe again and stood, panting. 

"You don't know me. You never did. And you never will." Sam began to walk out as Marion dropped to her knees next to Dean.

"You walk out that door, don't you  _ever_ come back." Dean groaned. Sam stopped at the door, taking a moment to look back at the twins, before defiantly wrenching the door open and stomping away from them. 

"I can't believe he-" Marion started, helping Dean sit up and stand.

"That's not our brother, anymore. She turned him into..." He cut himself off with a cough, but he didn't continue, limping toward the door. 

"Dean... He's not a monster. He's sick."

"Oh, he's sick, all right. Look what he's done in the last 24 hours! Bobby, you, me... He's hurt every person who might be called 'family', in favor of a fucking  _demon._  Man, Pony, I don't even recognize the kid anymore."

Marion wrapped Dean's arm around her shoulder and helped him limp to the elevator. "I'll drive, D. You lay down in back, okay?" He nodded, falling into an angry silence.


	23. Don't stand so close

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Jumping ahead a bit to when Zachariah takes Dean to the GreenRoom.

Marion stared at the chair Dean had disappeared from. Zachariah's grace was all over it. "I'm getting really fucking tired of these goddamned angels!" She growled.

"Calm down, girl. I'm sure he's-"

"Oh, he's fine! Of course, he is! The angels need him! Meanwhile, I have to go find Sam and Ruby, by myself."

"What am I?"

Marion sighed, a little of her anger dying in her chest. "I'm sorry, Bobby. Of course, I know you're here to help." She stood, pacing across the library. "I just wish I knew where they were. Maybe I could fix this if I knew where Dean was, where Sam's going. If I could just see-" She shook her head, pulling her phone out. 

"I'm an idiot. Chuck will know. He knows everything." She stopped dialing and looked to Bobby. "But if he knows about all of this, why hasn't he called to tell us?"

"Maybe somebody ain't lettin' him tell."

"Zachariah. That makes sense. Okay." She took a deep breath and finished calling the prophet.

"Marion?" His voice was sleepy and it forced Marion to check her watch. 7am must have been too early for the author.

"Chuck, simple 'yes' or 'no' answers. Are the angels pulling surveillance on you?" She asked, sitting on the couch.

"Um, yes?"

"Okay. We need to talk, away from prying eyes. So, you're gonna ask me out on a date."

"What? What do-"

"Trust me, Chuck. Ask me out, I'll pick you up and we can talk."

"Okay, um, Marion, are you free for dinner tonight?"

"I'll pick you up tonight. See ya, Chuck." Marion shut off her phone and stood, grabbing a book from one of Bobby's shelves and pulling a key out of a bowl on the desk. "I'm gonna borrow this book and one of your cars." 

"Of course, Marion. You gotta be careful, okay?"

"Yeah. As much as I can, here at the end of the world." She patted his shoulder, then walked out to the junkyard.

****************

When Chuck opened his door, he gasped. "Wow. You look-"

"Is it too much?" Marion asked, smoothing the front of her black and grey skater dress. "Gotta be convincing."

"No, it's... beautiful. I mean, perfect. You look perfect." Chuck ran his hand through his hair.

"Well, you clean up nicely, yourself. Come on, let's go." She said, turning quickly and heading for the car. Chuck followed her, sliding into the passenger side. Marion turned to him. "Okay, Chuck. Where'd the angels take Dean?" 

"The Greenroom. I-I don't know where it is. Are you sure we can talk about this?"

She pointed at the ceiling of the car, where she drew a large rune. "They can't hear. Thank God for Bobby's books. Okay, fine, we don't have a 20 on Dean; where's Sam going?"

"Ilchester, by Ellicott City, Maryland. There's a convent. St. Mary's. That's where Lilith is. It's the door to Lucifer's Cage. But you can't-"

"Can't what? Chuck, I have a horrible feeling about this and I need to be there-"

"When Lucifer rises?! No, you won't be safe." Chuck grabbed her hands, begging her.

"What do you mean? Lilith's gonna break the last seal?" 

"No, Sam is. Lilith dying... dying at that convent, it's the final seal."

"What? No, that's- What?" Marion pulled her hands back, shaking her head. "It's all been a con? Ruby, the demon blood, I was right? No good demons. Fuck! Okay, get out. I gotta get to Maryland." 

"No, you can't."

"Chuck, I have to try to stop this! Dean's MIA. It's on Atlas to get this done. Get out of the car or you're coming with me."

Chuck sighed, sadly. He opened the door and gave one last look before he stepped out. "Please, be careful."

"Not in the cards, Chuck. Thanks for the info." Marion peeled off down the street, the force slamming the door closed.

************

6 hours later, she pulled into the yard of the convent and rushed inside. Dean's voice, shouting Sam's name, lead her through the hallways to her brother, who was banging on a large wooden door. "Marion? What are you doing here?"

"Chuck told me what's going down. Are they in there?" She asked, pulling and pushing on the door. 

"Yeah, all three of 'em. We gotta stop him. Killing Lilith is the last Seal."

"I know. Sam!" Marion pounded her fist into the door. 

"Sam!"

"Sam, let us in!"

Dean looked over at Marion. "We have to find something to bash it in with."

The twins ran opposite ways down the hall to look for something heavy, a panic falling over Marion as a swell of power emanated from the locked room. "I found something!" Dean yelled, calling Marion back to the door. He raised a large, heavy standing candelabra and rammed it into the door. 

"You don't even know how hard this was!" Ruby could be heard on the other side of the door. "All the demons out for my head. No one knew. I was the best of those sons of bitches! The  _most_ loyal! Not even Alistair knew! Only Lilith! Yeah, I'm sure you're a little angry right now, but, I mean, come on, Sam! Even _you_ have to admit I'm- I'm awesome!"

"You bitch. You lying bitch!" 

Marion stopped listening at that, grabbing hold of the candelabra and helping Dean use it as a battering ram. The door burst open and Ruby stood to confront the twins as Dean pulled her knife out. "You're too late."

"I don't care." Dean growled, stalking toward her. Sam jumped up from near the altar to grab Ruby from behind and held her in place as Dean plunged the knife into her gut. She flickered with energy as Dean twisted the knife, then fell to the dirty floor as soon as he pulled it from her flesh. 

Sam looked from Ruby to his siblings. "I'm sorry." He whispered, his voice shaking as the pattern of blood came together and a bright light shot from the center.

Tears began to stream from Marion's eyes as a sound entered her brain. "It's so beautiful." She whispered, as the building began to tremble.

Dean grabbed Sam's jacket and the strap of Marion's dress as they stared at the light. "Come on. Let's go."

"Dean..." Sam grabbed Dean's shirt. "He's coming." He finished as Marion whispered, "He's singing."

"Come on!" Dean pulled his siblings toward the doors. Sam ran for them but Marion stared at the light, her tears an uncontrollable flow down her face. The door slammed in Sam and Dean's faces. The men pulled the door handles and tried to pry the doors open, to no avail, as the light got brighter and the room shook. 

As a high-pitched noise drilled into Sam and Dean's brains, causing them to double over with their hands over their ears, Marion stood crying next to the circle of light as she heard * _I'm finally free. Oh, Sam. You are special, my boy.*_ in the most beautiful, angelic voice she had ever heard.

Suddenly, the light was gone, the voice along with it. They looked around the airplane they suddenly were seated on as an old Yosemite Sam cartoon played. Marion wiped at her cheeks, finally able to stop crying.

"What the hell?" Dean asked.

"I don't know." Sam responded. 

"Folks, quick word from the flight deck. We're just passing over Ilchester, then Ellicott City, on our initial descent into Baltimore-"

"Ilchester? Weren't we just there?" Marion asked as Dean looked out the window.

"-so if you'd like to stretch your legs, now would be a good time to- Holy crap!" The plane jerked as light surrounded it. Dean struggled with his oxygen mask as Marion started crying again. She reached out, across Sam, to put a reassuring hand on her twin's arm. 

*************

The twins sat on a bench in front of the airport as Sam found and stole a car for them. "Two plane rides; two emergency landings. Never again." Dean muttered to himself.

"You're fine. We made it." 

"What did you hear back there? At St. Mary's, with all the tears?" He asked, quietly.

"It was the most jubilant, joyous, beautiful singing I've ever heard. There were no words to the song, but I knew he was rejoicing his freedom. And his grace?" She turned to Dean. "John Milton in _Paradise Lost_  said Lucifer was the most beautiful and he was right. Dean, every angel I've seen, they are _nothing_ compared to what came out of that door."

Dean looked down at his lap. "Great. Good to know the Devil is pretty enough to bring you to tears. What are we gonna do about Sam?"

"Nothing for now. I think we need to stick together, keep our heads down and hash this out."

Sam pulled up in a grey sedan, jumping out and running to the passenger side as Dean slid behind the wheel and Marion got into the backseat. 

They drove in silence for a while, listening to an old rock station, before the music cut out for a report about the 'explosion' at St. Mary's Convent. "-and Governor O'Malley urged calm, saying it's very unlikely an abandoned convent would be a target for terrorists, either foreign or homegrown."

"Change the station." Dean ordered.

Sam reached forward and hit another of the presets. "-Hurricane Kindly, unexpectedly slamming into the Galveston area-" He pushed another. "-announced a successful test of the North Korean nuclear-" A third. "-a series of tremors-" "-swine flu-" Sam flicked the radio off with a sigh, letting the silence weigh down the car.

"Guys, look-"

"Don't say anything." Dean cut him off. Neither of them wanted to hear it. "It's okay. We just gotta keep our heads down and hash this out, all right?" Marion looked down at her own words. She wished she actually believed those words.

"Yeah, okay." Sam was quiet. He didn't believe either.

"All right, well, first things first. How did we end up on Soul Plane?" Dean asked.

"Angels, maybe? I mean, you know, beaming us out of harm's way?" Sam suggested.

"You guys, maybe, but why me?" Marion asked.

"Maybe there are angels that _want_  the Wildcard around. Whatever, it's the least of our worries. We need to find Cas." 

"What do you mean?" Marion asked, leaning forward.

"Oh. He rebelled."

" _What_?!"

"Yeah, he bamphed Zachariah away from the Greenroom then took me see Chuck. Guess he was the only angel who wasn't okay with letting Lucifer out. Chuck's archangel came along to smite us and Cas stayed behind to hold it off while he poofed me to Maryland."

"He went against an archangel?! By himself?" Marion crumpled backward as she came to the realization that the angel was probably dead. She wiped her eyes on the skirt of the skater dress that she was unfortunately still wearing. "Abiit nemine salutato." She whispered, genuflecting herself. Sam stared at her in the rearview mirror, but didn't say anything.

**************

The trio entered the house slowly, without knocking. It was destroyed, more than just Chuck's normal mess. It looked like a grenade went off and the spray of blood drops on the floor seemed to support that. A creaking in the living room brought their attention to the foyer, so they cautiously went to investigate. As Sam approached the staircase, Chuck jumped out and bashed him with a wooden toilet plunger. "Geez! Ow!"

"Sam." Chuck was relieved as he lowered his weapon.

"Yeah!"

"Hey, Chuck." The twins said, tiredly.

"So... You're okay?!" Chuck asked, excitedly.

"Well, my head hurts." Sam rubbed at his temple.

"No, I mean... I mean, my, my last vision. You went, like, full-on Vader. Your body temperature was 150. Your heart rate was 200. Your eyes were black!"

"Your eyes went black?" Dean asked as Marion looked around at the blood on the floor and walls.

Sam turned slightly. "I didn't know."

"Where's Cas?" Dean directed at Chuck.

"He's dead. Or gone." Chuck said, apologetically. "The archangel smote the crap out of him. I'm sorry."

"You sure? I mean, maybe he just vanished into the light, or something." Dean denied. 

"Oh, no. He, like, exploded. Like a water balloon of chunky soup."

Marion covered her mouth with her hand and closed her eyes. She felt nauseated. "You got a..." Sam started.

"Uh... right here?" Chuck asked.

"Uh, the..."

"Oh. Oh, God. Is that a molar?" Chuck's distressed words forced Marion's emotional presence. She opened her eyes and stepped toward the prophet as he continued his broken words. "Do I have a  _molar_ in my  _hair_? This has been a really stressful day." Marion gently knocked the tooth from Chuck's hand, then moved to brush the dirt and grime off of his shoulders.

"Cas, you stupid bastard." Dean grumbled.

"Stupid? He was trying to  _help_ us." Sam defended.

"Yeah, exactly."

"So, what now?" Sam asked.

"I don't know."

_The Winchesters are with the prophet._

_Of course. We could expect no less._

_We must retrieve-_

  
_"_ Oh crap." Chuck looked around, nervously.

"What?" Sam asked.

"The angels-" Marion started.

"I can feel them." Chuck answered.

"Thought we'd find you here." Zachariah suddenly appeared in the kitchen, an angel on each side of him. He kicked a piece of debris and smiled at Dean. "Playtime's over, Dean. Time to come with us."

A rush of adrenaline hit Marion as she stepped forward and the angels froze in place. "Holy shit! I mean, you said you could, but I didn't believe you. Damn, look at-" Dean was freaked. 

"Yeah, deal with it later, Dean. How do we deal with them?" Marion gestured at the angels.

"We find out what we can about what's going on, then we send 'em to the outfield." Dean answered, pulling a knife and closing the kitchen door. 

As Dean drew the blood spell on the door, Sam stared at the frozen angels. "How'd you do that?"

"They aren't perceiving the passage of time. I'm pretty good with perception stuff. I'm not sure exactly how it works."

"How long have you-"

Marion saw past his questioning. "I've done it to you twice, Sam. You were in mortal danger both times. You never noticed. It's not a big deal."

"All right, I'm done." Dean said, closing the door and moving back to his previous place. "Is this where I was?"

"It doesn't matter. No one ever notices. I've moved across rooms and suddenly appeared places, no one noticed. Ready?" 

Dean nodded, then raised his hand to point at Zachariah. "You just keep your distance, asshat."

"You're upset."

"Yeah. A little. You sons of bitches jump-started Judgement Day!"

"Maybe we let it happen. We didn't _start_ anything. Right, Sammy?" Zachariah winked at the tallest Winchester, then turned his attention back to Dean. "You had a chance to stop your brother and you couldn't. So let's not quibble over who started what. Let's just say it was _all_ our faults and move on. 'Cause like it or not, it's Apocalypse Now. And we're back on the same team again."

"Is that so?" Dean asked, incredulously.

"You want to kill the Devil, we  _want_ you to kill the Devil. It's... synergy."

"And I'm just supposed to  _trust_ you? Cram it with walnuts, ugly."

"This isn't a game, son. Lucifer is powerful in ways that defy description. We need to strike  _now_ , hard and fast, before he finds his vessel."

"His vessel? Lucifer needs a meatsuit?" Sam asked.

Zachariah seemed to find that funny. "He  _is_ an angel. Them's the rules. And when he touches down... we're talking Four Horsemen, red oceans, fiery skies, the greatest hits. You can stop him, Dean, but you need our help."

"You listen to me, you two-faced douche, after what you did, I don't want jack squat from you!" Dean yelled.

"You listen to _me_ , boy!" Zachariah stepped forward, threateningly. "You think you can rebel against us? As Lucifer did?"

He looked down, finally noticing the blood dripping from Dean's left hand. "You're bleeding."

Dean looked down, then back up to Zachariah's face. "Yeah. A little insurance policy in case you dicks showed up." Dean turned, quickly sliding the door open and slamming his hand onto the sigil. Zachariah shouted as the angels disappeared in a bright flash of light. Dean confirmed their departure with a heavy breath. "Learned that from my friend Cas, you son of a bitch."

"This sucks ass." Chuck said, shaking his head.

Marion sighed. "Okay. They're gonna be back. Especially if we stay here. You need to go shower, Chuck. Get the pieces of... Jimmy Novak off of you." She gagged on the words, then walked out to their stolen car.

************

Marion took a shower in the dirty bathroom of The Regent Inn, but it did nothing to make her feel less disgusting. She exited the bathroom in jeans and a t-shirt, happy to get out of the dress. Dean was cleaning his gun. "Hey."

"Hey." She responded.

"You all right? I mean, with Cas and-and Lucifer and-"

"Come on. You know I'm a rock." She dropped her bag on the dresser and turned to Dean. "I'm more worried about you and Sam. What, with the demon blood withdrawal and the... the way he acted toward you, the fight in the honeymoon suite. How can that damage ever be repaired?"

"It can't." Dean answered, beginning to piece the gun back together. 

"But Sam's gonna try. He _keeps_ trying to get us to talk about it. He wants us to yell at him. He wants us to argue."

"Yeah, well, I have absolutely no desire to do  _anything_ Sam wants to do." Dean turned to his twin. "None of this would have happened if he'd just told us the fuckin' truth... from the beginning. Or literally,  _any_ point along the way. He let the _Devil_ out of a cage _God_ put him in before he disappeared. _Your_ biggest secret was an asset against the angels and has saved our lives, Sam's started the end of the world."

"Look, I'm not saying we should, but maybe we  _should_ talk about this. With him." She clarified.

"No. I don't want to. I just don't think I could handle that conversation. Not right now. Not til we fix this." Dean finished putting his pistol together and loaded it as Sam entered the room. Dean nodded at him. "Hey." 

"Hey." Sam closed the door and reached into his jacket, tossing something to Dean and handing one to Marion. "Here. Hex bags. No way the angels find us with those. Demons, either, for that matter."

Dean appraised it. "Where'd you get it?"

"I made it."

"How?" Dean asked.

Sam hesitated. The twins looked up, questioning. "I... I learned it from Ruby."

Dean set the gun on the table next to the ammo and stepped down, playing with the bag. "Speaking of; how you doing? Are you jonesing for another hit of bitch blood, or what?"

"It's weird. Uh, tell you the truth, I'm fine. No shakes, no fever. It's like whoever... put me on that plane cleaned me right up."

Dean chuckled, slightly. "Supernatural methadone." 

"Yeah. I guess." Sam looked between Marion and Dean. "Guys-"

"Sam." Dean interrupted with conviction. He turned back toward the table. "It's okay. You don't have to say anything."

Sam chuckled softly. "Well, that's good. Because what can I even say? 'I'm sorry'? 'I screwed up'? Doesn't really do it justice, you know? Look, there's nothing I can do or say that will ever make this right-"

"So, why do you keep bringing it up?!" Dean snapped. Sam took a deep breath. Dean set the ammunition clip down and turned back to Sam. "Look, all I'm saying is, why do we have to put this under a microscope? We made a mess, we clean it up. That's it."

"All right." Marion pushed off from the dresser and nodded at her brothers. "So, say this is just any other hunt, you know? What do we do first?"

"We'd, uh, figure out where the thing is." Sam answered.

"All right. So, we just gotta find... the Devil." Dean concluded. 

"Okay, Sam, you hit Dad's journal to brush up on tracking demons and shit. Dean, you check the news."

"Red oceans and burning skies, right? Gotcha." 

"What are you going to do?" Sam asked.

"I'm gonna get some sleep. I haven't slept since... before you beat our asses in that hotel." Sam looked down, in shame. Marion hopped onto the bed and put her arms under her head. "Don't sulk, Sammy. I wasn't trying to bitch, just giving you a timeline. Last time I got any _real_ sleep was the night Jimmy ran off. Which seems like a million years ago. Can't believe it's been less than a week."

She woke six hours later to a knock on their motel room door. She pulled her Beretta out from beneath the pillow and slipped off the bed as Dean slid to the edge of the other side and Sam approached the door. She dropped her gun hand to her side and stepped over next to the dresser as Sam looked through the peephole, then opened the door to reveal a short blond woman. She looked up at Sam in shock. "You okay, lady?" He asked.

"Sam. Is it really you?" She asked, almost in tears. "And you're so firm."

Sam looked back at Dean and Marion. "Uh, do I know you?"

The woman pulled her hand back as Sam stared at her, completely confused. "No. But _I_ know you. You're Sam Winchester and you're-" she looked past Sam to the bed. Her face fell a bit as she looked at Dean, who was hiding his gun in his lap. "Not what I pictured. I'm Becky."

She pushed her way into the room. Marion, uncomfortable with the sudden intrusion, raised her pistol. "I read all about you guys. And I've even written a few-" She giggled and looked down, imagining the content of her stories. "Anyway, Mr. Edlund told me where you were." Dean stood, setting his gun on the bed.

"Chuck?" Marion asked, stepping away from the dresser as Sam closed the door.

Becky's face fell and her eyebrows stitched together. "Oh, _you're_ here?"

Marion kept her pistol trained on the blond. "Where else would I be?"

Becky flicked her hair off her shoulder. "Well, I was  _hoping_ back in-"

"If you say 'Hell', I swear to God, I'll shoot you." Marion wanted nothing to do with Sam's little fan girl. She wanted nothing to do with any of Carver Edlund's fans. "You do recognize that I'm a  _real_ person, right? Who's already lived through Hell? That you are wishing that on me proves you are the lowest common denominator. Why the fuck would Chuck tell you about us?"

"Right. He's got a message, but he's being watched. Angels." She squealed. "Nice change-up to the mythology, by the way. The demon stuff was getting kinda old."

"Right. Just, um... what's the message?" Sam pressed.

"He had a vision." Becky closed her eyes and moved her hand through the air as she quoted. "'The Michael Sword is on Earth. The angels lost it'."

"The Michael Sword?" Dean asked.

"Does he know where it is, by any chance?" Marion asked.

"In a castle, on a hill made of 42 dogs."

"42 dogs?" The twins asked.

"Are... you sure you got that right?" Sam asked.

"It doesn't make sense, but that's what he said. I memorized every word." Becky stepped closer to Sam and put her hand on his chest again. "For you."

Sam looked to Dean and Marion for help, before looking down at Becky. "Um, Becky, c-uh, can you... quit touching me?"

"No." Becky responded.

Marion tucked her gun into her waistband and stepped up next to Sam, looking down at the woman, intimidatingly. "Get your fingers off my brother, or I break them."

Becky looked offended, but just scared enough to withdraw her hand. "You're so rude."

"And you're so creepy. We have enough shit to deal with, sweetheart, without you sexually assaulting Sam. Go write yourself into a fanfic with him and let us do our damned jobs." Marion opened the door and gestured for Becky to leave.

"I... You know everyone hates you."

"Story of my life, sister. Goodbye." Marion pushed the blond out into the hallway and shut the door. "I _hate_ fangirls."

"Okay. Castle on a hill of dogs. What the hell does that mean?" Dean asked.

"I don't know. There's a church a couple blocks away. I'm gonna go scrounge for lore books. You guys, keep doing your thing. Check Bobby's ETA, he's our best asset in lore stuff." Marion grabbed her jacket and nodded at her brothers before exiting the room.

***********

Marion sat at a table in the back room of the church, a pile of books in front of her. She was staring at a picture of the archangel Michael, but all she could think about was Castiel. He'd rebelled. He stood against an archangel to make sure Dean got to Ilchester, and they failed. They failed to stop Sam, failed to stop Lucifer. Cas died for nothing. He explodedfor nothing. Now it was on her and her brothers to find Lucifer before he convinced some poor unfortunate soul to let him in. 

Maybe it shouldn't be, though. Maybe it should be on her. Maybe she should embrace this Wildcard thing and go do it for them. It wasn't as if they're were ever going to be able to work together again. Not like before. 

Sam came in and sat across from her. "Hey."

"Hey. You okay?" She asked, keying in on his monotone and sad eyes.

He hesitated, then swallowed. "Bobby showed up. I... I told him what I did. He... said it couldn't be forgiven."

"I'm sure he didn't mean that. He's probably just... upset. Disappointed." 

"Yeah. I kinda expected worse, though. I expected to be getting it from everyone."

She looked down and sighed, closing the book in front of her. "We warned you. We took turns telling you that you were being led astray. You listened to a demon, over every family member you have. You got conned into opening Lucifer's Cage and letting out the first fallen." She clicked her tongue. "I love you and I understand better than most people would. I've _been_ manipulated by a demon. I mean, I still don't know if Fergus was ever sincere or if the whole thing was a ploy to get me on his side. I know how easily they can play on your insecurities, how they find a rift in the family and shove themselves in to fill the hole. Fergus did the same thing to me. I understand, Sammy, but that's why you should have listened to me."

Sam pushed his hair back and Marion kept talking. "Now, I'm disappointed that you did what you wanted, that you lied to us, got addicted to demon blood, stole Bobby's car, beat us up in a blood-fueled rage, and opened Lucifer's Cage, but... I understand and I don't think it _is_ unforgivable. This is the biggest fuck-up a Winchester has ever managed but... Maybe we find the Devil before he gets his vessel, before he starts the End. Maybe we fix this and then we can fix us."

"You really think we could manage that?" Sam was cautious with his hopeful tone, so she smiled.

"If anyone can do it, it's us."

Sam nodded, pushing his hair out of his face again. "So, uh, the-the Wildcard thing, what's that about? You and Dean both mentioned it."

"Oh, it's nothing. It's just..." Marion opened her book again. "You're Hell-touched because Azazel poured blood in your mouth. I'm Hell-touched because Fergus marked me with sulphur. If I'd killed Lilith at that convent, I would have released Lucifer, too."

"Really?"

"But wait, there's more." She said, sarcastically. "I shared a womb with the angels' golden boy. We were made from the same act of creation, grew in the same amniotic fluid. We are connected in ways I can't fully explain. So, anything he's tapped for like say, ganking the Devil, I can do instead."

Sam stared at her with wide eyes as she cleared her throat. "The angels are set on Dean. Just like Azazel was set on  _you_. Apparently, according to Azazel, you guys are easier to manipulate. He wanted to kill me, but he settled for taking me to Hell. It's really not a big deal. The Michael Sword, that's a big deal."

"Right." Sam tapped the book in front of him. "Find the Michael Sword so we can fix this."


	24. Say 'yes'

Walking back into the hotel room, defeated from a lack of dog-related Michael references, Marion and Sam didn't speak. Sam entered the room first, his body language dropping immediately from depression to anger. "No!" He shouted as he charged into the room. A telephone hit him in the face as Marion stepped into the doorway and quickly surveyed the scene. As soon as she saw Bobby bleeding on the floor, the scene froze. Dean stood from his spot where the demon was kicking him.

"What the fuck happened?!" Marion exclaimed, running to Bobby's side.

"Bobby was possessed." Dean answered, pulling the blade from his stomach and plunging it into the male demon who had been attacking him. Sam kicked out at the brunette female, who unfroze and looked around. She definitely noticed the changes in the room, looking around warily at the dead lackey and the Winchester with the demon-killing knife. She stepped backward as Dean advanced on her and threw her head back as her smoke poured out of her vessel's mouth.

"Leave her! Grab an arm, D." Marion shouted, trying to lift the redneck. The brothers pushed her out of the way and grabbed Bobby's limbs, hoisting him up and dragging him down the hall toward the exit.

They burst into the emergency room of the nearest hospital, Bobby hanging between the Winchester men. "Need some help here!" Marion shouted.

"What happened?" A nurse asked, rushing up.

"He was stabbed." Dean answered, breathing heavily. 

"Can we get a gurney?" The nurse yelled, turning to the others rushing through the ER. Two orderlies showed up almost immediately with a gurney and Sam and Dean dropped Bobby on it. 

"Hang on, Bobby. Hang in there. You're gonna be okay." Dean muttered as the orderlies started to rush away with the man. Sam began to follow, but the nurse put her hand on his shoulder to stop him.

"Just wait here." 

"No. No, we... we can't just leave him." Sam exclaimed, pointing at the gurney disappearing down the hallway. 

"Just don't move. I've got questions." She said before disappearing after the gurney.

Sam turned to Dean as he ran his hand nervously through his hair. "Sammy, we gotta go." Dean said, quietly.

Sam didn't look at him as he responded. "No. No way, Dean." 

"The demons heard where the sword is. We got to get to it before they do, if we're not too late already. Come on!" Dean said, before walking out. Marion didn't say a word as she turned and followed her twin back out to the car. Sam was on her heels. 

****************************************************************************************************

They walked into the storage unit, shotguns at the ready, and were immediately met with dead demons lying on the floor. They spread out, looking around the storage room. "I see you told the demons where the sword is." Zachariah's voice made them turn.

"Oh, thank God. The angels are here." Dean said, sarcastically.

Zachariah ignored him as he stepped over the body of a demon. "And to think... they could have grabbed it any time they wanted." He lifted a hand and the door rolled closed behind them. "It was right in front of them."

"What do you mean?" Sam asked.

"We may have planted that particular piece of prophecy inside Chuck's skull, but it happened to be true. We _did_  lose the Michael sword. We truly couldn't find it. Until now. You've just hand-delivered it to us."

"We don't have anything." Dean seemed confused.

The angel rolled his eyes. "It's _you_ , Chucklehead." He stepped forward. "You're the Micheal sword. What, you thought you could _actually_  kill Lucifer? You simpering wad of insecurity and self-loathing? No. You're just a human, Dean... and not much of one." 

"What do you mean, _I'm_  the sword?" Dean asked.

"You're Michael's weapon. Or rather, his... receptacle." 

"I'm a vessel?" Dean asked for clarification as Marion realized that meant she was one, too.

"You're _the_  vessel. Michael's vessel."

"How? Wh-why me?" 

"Because you're _chosen_! It's a great honor, Dean." Zachariah said.

"Oh, yeah. Yeah, life as an angel condom. That's real fun. I think I'll pass, thanks." 

"Joking. Always joking. Well... no more jokes." The angel lifted his hand, fingers shaped like a pistol and pointed it at Dean, before moving slightly to point at Sam. "Bang." An audible crunch sounded across the room as the tibia in each of Sam's legs broke. The angel quickly moved to Marion. "Bang." She screamed as she fell, the pain radiating through her entire lower body.

"God!" Sam shouted.

"You son of a bitch!" Dean growled. 

"Keep mouthing off, I'll break more than their legs. I am completely and utterly through screwing around. The war has begun, we don't have our general. That's bad. Now, Michael is going to take his _vessel_  and lead the final charge against the adversary. You understand me?"

"How many humans die in the crossfire, huh? A million? Five, ten?" 

"Probably more. If Lucifer goes unchecked, you know how many die? _All_  of them. He'll roast the planet alive."

Dean stared at him for a moment before nodding slightly. "There's a reason you're telling me this instead of just nabbing me. You need my consent. Michael needs my say-so to ride around in my skin."

"Unfortunately, yes."

"Well, there's gotta be another way."

"There is  _no_ other way. There _must_ be a battle. Michael _must_ defeat the serpent. It is written."

"Yeah, maybe. But, on the other hand... Eat me. The answer's no."

"Okay. How about this? Your friend Bobby- we know he's gravely injured. Uh, say yes, and we'll heal him. Say no, he'll never walk again."

Marion and Sam could see the conflict in Dean's face as he battled himself over the answer. "No."

"Then how about we heal _you_  from... stage four stomach cancer?"

Dean doubled over, coughing, ending up on one knee. When he spit into his palm, he could see blood, but he just shook his head and groaned out another, "No."

"Then let's get really creative. Uh, let's see how... your siblings do without their lungs." The pain was intense, like the most painful drowning death imaginable. Marion closed her eyes and told herself not to panic. "Are we having fun yet? You're going to say 'yes', Dean."

"Just kill us." Dean demanded.

"Kill you? Oh, no. I'm just getting started." 

A bright light and followed by sounds of a fight made Marion open her eyes. Castiel was there and fighting with the other angels. Another flash of light told Marion that Zachariah and Castiel were the only two angels left. She turned her head to see Sam had passed out and the dark edges tunneling out her vision told her that she was going the same way. "How are you..." Zachariah started.

"Alive? That's a good question. How did these three end up on that airplane? Another good question. 'Cause the angels didn't do it. I think we both know the answer, don't we?" She closed her eyes again as Castiel spoke.

"No. That's not possible."

"It scares you. Well, it should. Now, put the Winchesters back together and go. I won't ask twice." The pain stopped at once and Marion heard Sam take a big gulp of air, at the exact same time as her. She patted her legs before standing, slowly. She stared at Castiel. It was him. Every bit of him was... him. From Jimmy Novak to the grace inside him. "You three need to be more careful." 

"Yeah, I'm starting to get that." Dean looked from Cas to Marion and Sam, then back to Cas. "Your frat brothers are bigger dicks than I thought."

"I don't mean the angels. Lucifer is circling his vessel. And once he takes it, those hex bags won't be enough to protect you." He stepped closer to them, putting a hand on Dean's chest and one on Sam's. Marion watched as grace shot from his fingertips into their chests and her brothers gasped.

"What the hell was that?" Dean groaned, grabbing his chest.

"An Enochian sigil. It'll hide you from every angel in creation, including Lucifer."

"What, did you just brand us with it?" Dean asked.

"No. I carved it into your ribs."

Marion stepped forward, pushing between her brothers. Sam took a deep breath. "Hey, Cas. Were you really dead?"

"Yes." The angel answered, simply.

"Then how are you back?" Marion asked. Castiel looked at the Winchesters, then reached out and grabbed her arm. They were suddenly in a park, standing next to a bench in front of a duck pond. It was still night, so they hadn't gone too far. They stared at each other for several moments. "Dean said you rebelled. I-I helped Chuck pick pieces of you out of his hair. Did God bring you back?"

"He is the only one powerful enough."

"And he saved us, put us on the plane. I knew Zachariah wouldn't have done that. Not for me and Sam." Marion looked at the bench, then sat down, taking a deep breath. "So, what happens to you now? You rebelled. That's pretty much what Anna did." 

"You should be more concerned with what happens to you and your brothers now. I will hide you from Lucifer and the others but if Lilith knew about you, then you have to be prepared for Lucifer to know about you, too. You are a Michael sword. That makes you a threat." He sat next to her. "You are in danger."

"I don't care about that. I'm always in danger. You were dead, Cas. I thought I'd never see you again. I thought the last memory of you that I'd have would be... that dream.... I'm just..."

He reached over and grabbed her hand. "I'm uneasy. I was... rude to you. I was pulled from my vessel, sent home, tortured and I assigned blame to you. It wasn't your fault any more than it was Dean's. I'm sorry that I-"

"It's okay. _I_ blamed me, too. I'm just... so happy you're alive. Are... are you... is 'free' the right word?" Marion looked into his blue eyes. He looked away.

"I am free of Heaven's regulations, but... the war has begun. Lucifer has been released. If we are to stay alive, we all need to focus. I-"

"Can't focus around me." Marion finished. She nodded. "I understand. You're right. It's the end of the world, why should we let ourselves be distracted?" She smiled, sadly, and pulled her hand back. "You should go ahead and mark up my ribs and then... could you please drop me off at the hospital where Bobby is?"

Castiel barely moved as he put his hand on her chest and zapped her with grace. She didn't make a sound, though the feeling was akin to Alistair cutting into her bones. As soon as he was done, Marion appeared alone in the corridor outside of room 113A. She took a moment to collect herself before opening the door and entering. A nurse, who was writing on Bobby's chart, looked up at her as she stepped inside. "Can I help you, miss?"

"Yeah, uh, my name's Marion Singer. He's my father." 

"Oh. I didn't think we found any family for him."

"The cops called me. Dad and I haven't talked in years, so I'm not exactly his emergency contact. Can you tell me... is he okay? Like, is- what happened?"

"Stab wound. Fairly deep. There was some damage to the spinal column." The nurse said the last sentence in a carefully measured tone. 

"He's... I understand." Marion said, softly. She took a seat in the chair next to the bed and took the redneck's hand in hers. 

Dean and Sam arrived several hours after her, as Bobby was waking up. Bobby seemed happy to see her and happy that her brothers had made it back safely, but when the young intern doctor came in to drop the bomb of paraplegia on him, his face contorted in anger. "'Unlikely to walk again'?! Why, you snot-nosed son of a bitch!" The doctor ran from the room as Bobby yelled. "Wait 'til I get out of this bed! I'll use my game leg and kick your friggin' ass! Yeah, you better run!" Bobby looked over at the boys, both leaning against the window. "You believe that yahoo?"

"Screw him. You'll be fine." Dean responded.

"So, let me ask the million dollar question: What do we do now?" Sam asked.

Bobby looked away. "Well... We save as many as we can for as _long_ as we can, I guess. It's bad. Whoever win, Heaven _or_ Hell, we're boned." 

"What if _we_  win?" Dean suggested. The room turned to him, confused. Bobby's eye twitched as he tried to wrap his mind around it. "I'm serious. I mean, screw the angels and the demons and their crap apocalypse." He stepped away from the window and stopped at the foot of Bobby's bed. "Hell, they wanna fight a war, they can find their _own_  planet. This one's ours and I say, they get the hell off it. We take 'em all on. We kill the Devil. Hell, we even kill Michael if we have to, but we do it our own damn selves."

"And how are we supposed to do all this, genius?" Marion asked.

"I got no idea. But what I _do_  have is a GED and a give-'em-hell attitude, and I'll figure it out." Dean said, confidently.

Bobby looked at Sam, who shrugged slightly. "You are nine kinds of crazy, boy." He said, amused. 

Dean nodded. "It's been said." He said, stepping forward to pat Bobby's shoulder. "Listen, you stay on the mend. We'll see you in a bit." He started out the door, Marion smiling and following after him. 

"Sam?" Bobby's voice stopped the Winchesters' exodus. "I was awake. I know what I said back there. I just want you to know that... that _was_  the demon talking. I ain't cutting you out, boy. Not ever."

Marion thought Sam might cry, but he just sighed and said, "Thanks, Bobby."

"You're welcome. I deserve a damn medal for this, but... you're welcome." Sam smiled as he turned and followed the twins out of the room and into the parking lot. 

"You know, I was thinking, Dean... maybe we could go after the Colt." Sam said as they walked toward the Impala. Marion had read about the Colt, but she wasn't sure what happened to it. 

Dean didn't seem impressed by the idea. "Why? What difference would that make?"

"Well, we could use it on Lucifer. I mean, you just said back there-"

"I just said a bunch of crap from Bobby's benefit." Dean stopped in the middle of the road, causing Marion and Sam to stop and turn to him. "I mean, I'll fight. I'll fight 'til the last man, but let's at least be honest. I mean, we don't stand a snowball's chance, and you know that. I mean, hell, you of _all_ people know that." Dean pushed past Marion to the car.

"Dean." Sam said. Dean turned to him. Sam sighed. "Is there something you wanna say to me?"

Marion looked at her twin's face and closed her eyes. It's time for honesty. "I tried, Sammy. I mean, I _really_  tried. But I just can't keep pretending that everything's all right. Because it's not, and it's never _going_ to be. You chose a _demon_  over your own family and look what happened."

"I would give anything, _anything_ , to take it all back."

"I know you would, and I know how sorry you are. I do. But, man... you were the one that I depended on the most, and you let me down in ways that I can't even..." Marion opened her eyes as Dean struggled for the right words. "I'm just, I'm havin' a hard time forgivin' and forgetting here, you know?"

Sam nodded slightly. "What can I do?"

Dean chuckled, ruefully. "Honestly? Nothin'." Sam nodded again. "I just don't... I don't think we can ever be what we were. You know?"

Sam was obviously expecting as much, because he just nodded again. Marion saw the surprise finally enter Sam's face, though, when Dean finished with, "I just don't think I can trust you." He didn't move as Dean walked to the driver's door of the Impala and dropped his weight behind the steering wheel. Marion grasped his arm and pulled him toward the car. She knew what it was to be on Dean's shit list, but standing around moping wasn't gonna help anything. 

***********************************

Marion sat at a bar in Sioux Falls' best honkey tonk. In the two months since she'd been staying at Bobby's, putting in ramps and outfitting the place for a wheelchair-bound hunter, she'd become a regular at Ballyhoo. She didn't want to drink with Bobby, she might accidentally show her cards and let him know she was more exhausted than him. She hadn't heard from Castiel since the day he showed up at the hospital to take Dean's necklace. She hadn't heard from Sam since the day they defeated War. Things were getting harder and harder, especially without the familial support. She was having trouble treading water since Lucifer busted onto the scene, since War held her hostage in a basement because she could see that ring shining with that deep red energy she had noticed all around town. She felt like she was drowning when Dean told her that Sam had walked and that he had just _let_ him. 

She felt a tear roll down her cheek as a man sat on the stool next to her. She wiped it away absentmindedly.

"Well, it's not the torrential downpour we saw in Maryland, but it's good to see I still have an effect on you... even in this vessel." Marion stiffened as she realized who the sandy blond man actually was. "Oh, nothing to fear. We're just gonna talk." He assured, soothingly.

"I get the feeling talking is your strong point." She whispered. "How... how did you find me? I've got sigils."

"You're a creature of habit. When things get hard, Marion, you run home or Houma. Sioux Falls, South Dakota or good ol' New Orleans. Figured you'd pick this place based on dear Mr. Singer's condition. From there, it just takes a little detective work. Stake out the junkyard, wait 'til you're alone." Lucifer put his hand on her shoulder. "You know, you're the only one I _could_ physically find."

"That's 'cause they ran away; from each other, from _you_." Marion took a drink from her shaking glass.

"And you?"

"You said it. I went home." She looked at him in the mirror behind the bar. "My brothers can't stand to be around each other. I'd pick Dean, normally, but... _I_ can't be around him sulking like a child."

"So, you separated yourself from both of them." Lucifer scoffed, removing his hand. "You remind me of my brother, Gabe. He disappeared. Instead of helping me, _or_ helping Michael, he ran away."

Marion twisted on her barstool to look at the archangel. Another tear escaped her eye. "You didn't come here to give me a family history for God. Why are you here?" Looking straight at him, without the mirror as a safety buffer, she was overwhelmed by his beauty. The vessel was attractive, blue eyes and a charming smile, but it was his grace that pulled a stream of tears from her. She wiped them away and looked at the top of the bar.

"Meg said you're the Wildcard." She scoffed. "I take it you've heard the term."

"Yeah. Once or twice. If you're here to tell me not to say 'yes' to Michael, you don't need to waste your breath. I'm not going to be saying 'yes' to him any more than Dean is."

"Oh. You haven't heard the rest of the story. You really should talk to Sam more often."

She instinctively looked over at him. "What _about_ Sam?" 

"This vessel, you can see he won't hold me for long." Marion examined closer, seeing some spots where the grace was pushing out a little more than everywhere else. "Because he was an improvisation. A last-minute substitution for my true vessel. My true vessel was groomed for the job from a very young age. I believe the term  _you_ used was 'Hell-touched'."

"Sam. Sam's your vessel." She looked away, wiping at her cheeks. "Dean's a vessel, Sam's a vessel-"

" _You're_ a vessel." Lucifer finished. 

"Oh, I get it. Sam wouldn't say 'yes', so you came to try Plan B." She chuckled. "Why would I ever agree?"

"Because someone is going to. This fight is millions of years in the making. What I know of you, you're going to say 'yes'. And, if you _were_ going to say 'yes', I'd hope it'd be to me. I mean, I didn't pay a djinn to leave you in the desert to die."

She shook her head. Zachariah. What a dickbag. "Why would I say 'yes' to either of you?"

"Because, you don't want your brothers to, do you? I mean, someone is going to say 'yes' to me. Someone's gonna say 'yes' to Michael. It _has_ to happen. You're going to let someone in and I kinda think I'm the better choice, since, ya know, I'm gonna win."

"Well, how about you give me your number and I'll call you if I ever decide to become a meat puppet." She finished her whiskey and dropped off of the stool. She turned to Lucifer and swallowed. "Until then, Satan, I'm gonna save as many people as I can from your apocalypse, for as long as I can."

"You know... I wouldn't expect any different. I'll give you time to think about it, Marion. Don't be like Gabriel, though. Hiding from the fight won't be good for your family." Lucifer said, before he disappeared from the bar.

****************

Marion ran straight for New Orleans. It was safer and her being in Sioux Falls was dangerous for Bobby. She checked into her extended stay motel and fell into a light sleep. "Welcome to the Apocalypse, sweetheart." A familiar voice prompted her eyes to open and she was suddenly looking at herself.

But not herself, really. She had short natural blond hair, shaved in a wide mohawk, and she was Hell-torture skinny again. She hadn't been eating. "What?" She looked around the room. It was no different than the one she'd fallen asleep in, except... maybe she just hadn't noticed the peeling paint. No, even she wouldn't believe that about herself.

"Yeah. The, uh, angels dicking with Dean again, I'm sure. You got dragged into the future along with him."

"Into the future? Into the Apocalypse? We lost?" Mohawk nodded, solemnly. "How'd you find me so quickly?"

"I didn't. You just dropped into my bed." 

"You came back to New Orleans?" She looked around, again. Same room. She really was a creature of habit.

"Sweetie, I never left. That whole thing with Dean... He was so sure we'd be better off apart. By the time I realized we were idiots for separating, that _Lucifer_  had been right, it was too late."

"Wait." Marion pushed out of the bed to stand next to herself. "The world ended and we weren't together?!"

"No. The world ended _because_  we weren't together." Mohawk shook her head, sadness pulling at her eyes and mouth. "I'm 9000% certain that we could've stopped it. If we could've just gotten past Dean's divisive bullshit, Sammy would still be alive, but... nope."

"Why didn't you go find them? Why are you _still_  alone?"

"I'm not. Come with me." Mohawk pulled her gently by the arm out of the room. She weaved her through the halls of the motel, all lined with dirty people. "This is the safest building in what used to be New Orleans. Beaux and Lili marked it up real nice before they went underground. Crotes can't touch it, or angels, most demons. I started bringing people in as soon as I knew Sam had said 'yes'. Some of these people-"

Marion pulled back on Mohawk's arm. "Sam said 'yes'?"

"We weren't there to stop him. I mean, Sam isn't known for his willpower. He's a fuckin' addict."

"Where's Dean?" Marion didn't want to be with this emaciated version of herself, anymore.

"Your Dean is probably running down my Dean."

"And _your_ Dean? I can't imagine he's been idle."

"On a semi-permanent quest for the Colt. I wish he'd called me at the beginning. I could've gotten it for him." 

" _Where_  is he?"

"Camp Chitaqua. He's a major asshole. He's become _worse_  than Dad. Yeah, I didn't think that was possible, either." Mohawk chuckled at the look on Marion's face.

"Hey, Pony. I'm gonna make a-" Crowley approached them. Marion couldn't help but stare. He had a beard and was wearing jeans and a black t-shirt. "What's this?" 

"Me from the past." Mohawk answered.

"How _far_  in the past?" Crowley asked.

"A few months past leaving you to rot in the woods." Marion responded, angrily.

He smirked and shook his head, a little. "Ah, no wonder she looks so unhappy to see me. 2009 wasn't a good year for us."

"What is he doin' here?" 

Mohawk smiled, patting Crowley's shoulder. "His plans fell through when Lucifer won. Lucifer hates him. So, he's here. He runs the scavenging parties."

"You let a demon-"

"Sh!" Mohawk put her hands up. "Some of my people don't know, okay? Look, a lot's changed in the last 5 years."

"I'm gonna head out, but pay attention." Crowley gestured to Marion. "This is why you need to eat more, pet. You used to have hips and breasts."

"Thought you loved me, no matter how I look?"

"Yeah. But you _used_  to look healthy." Crowley pressed a quick kiss to Mohawk's lips. "I love you. Back in a few hours." He said, before disappearing down the hallway.

"Okay, you need to come with me." Marion said, grabbing Mohawk's hand, who pulled it back and shook her head. "You're with _Crowley_ , in the safest building in New Orleans, taking care of a bunch of people who are _not_  your responsibility. You haven't seen your twin since before the End. Why? Why _not_  leave?"

"I _took_  responsibility for these people when I let them in here. And this is only the safest building in N'awlins when I'm in it. Beaux's wording was specific. I haven't left the building in years. I can't leave. These people are already starving. I can't leave them to the Crotes." 

"So, you're gonna stay here, in this _dead_  city, giving away the food Crowley brings for _you_  until you starve to death and leave the building open to the Croatoans, anyway?!"

"Beaux's wording was specific. My soul must be in the building for it to work. My body isn't necessary." 

Marion shook her head in disbelief. "Oh, my gods! I'm killing myself."

"I can protect them better, without using any resources, as a ghost."

"What'd Crowley call it? 'The grand Winchester tradition of sacrifice?'" She scoffed. "He doesn't know you're doing this, does he?"

"No. He would've force-fed me a week ago. He thinks I'm eating... a little."

"But he _has_  to be able to tell. He has to _see_  that you're dying."

"Not the way you do. He can't perceive the pallor, my shaky extremities or sunken eyes. None of them can. When I go, it'll be a surprise, but I gave a set of notes to Garth. He'll hand them out. Everyone will understand."

"Garth?!" Marion rubbed her hand across her face.

"He's my Second. He's not the brightest, I know, but he's good for morale."

"I have to get out of here. Tell me you have an arms supply so I don't have to try to get to Camp Chitaqua on the grace of my good looks." 

Mohawk pulled a familiar Glock from the back of her jeans and handed it over. "I guess I won't need it much longer." 

Marion tucked it into her waistband and glared at herself. "You are an idiot. After everything we've survived, hundreds of years,  _literal_ Hell... you shack up with the demon who put you in that situation, conspire to... martyr yourself for a bunch of people- these people are not your family! Your baby brother was alone! He was alone and he gave up and that is on  _you._  So, I hope you enjoy the Void, because you deserve  _so_ much worse." She raised her middle finger and stomped down the hallway and out into the ruined city of New Orleans.

****************

Marion approached the gates of Camp Chitaqua and parked her stolen car. She exited the car as a man ran up, rifle raised. "Who are you?"

She stared him down, unhappy to have a gun in her face. "I want you to take a _real_  good look at my face, and then I want _you_  to tell _me_  who I am."

He analyzed her face for a moment before his eyebrows drew together. "I don't _know_  who you are."

"Look, I know he probably doesn't mention me much, 'cause it's easier for him to pretend he doesn't _have_  a family, but my name's Marion Winchester and you can either shoot me or point me toward my twin brother's cabin."

The rifle dropped to his side and he nervously pointed toward a large cabin. "He's out on a mission, though, ma'am."

"I'll wait." She growled as she stomped toward the cabin. As soon as she entered the door and saw Dean chained to a ladder, she dropped out of the angry persona. "Dean!"

"Mare! Are you-"

She ran to him, pulling her lockpicks out of her pocket. "Oh, come on. You know the angels can't take you on a dance through time without your dance partner."

"Man, I'm so glad to see you. I'm such a dick in the future."

"'In the future', huh?" She said as she released the ratchet hook and pulled the cuff off of Dean's hand.

"Hey. I was doin' better before this apocalypse shit."

"Agreed, but one step forward gets you nowhere against two steps back."

Dean stood, rubbing his wrist. "Hey, I didn't _make_  you leave."

"You think I could stay? How you went all Terminator? You laser-focused on hunting and then you moped whenever you weren't hunting." Marion stood, dusting off her knees. "I have been tortured, D., and I would rather go back and be chopped into tiny pieces than deal with a depressed alpha male who's doing everything in his power to deny that he's depressed."

"Hey, harsh."

"Honest. Look, the conversation I had with myself in Louisiana was nauseating. This is a timeline we have to avoid, at all costs."

"Except saying 'yes' to Michael."

"Well, duh. So, how do we get home?" 

Dean patted her back. "I'm hopin' Cas can get us back. Unless you got a better idea."

"Nope." She said, walking back to the cabin door.

Slipping out of the cabin was easy, but they were soon approached by the prophet Chuck. "Hey, Dean. You got a second?"

Dean looked like he'd been caught with his hand in the cookie jar. "No. Yes. Uh, I-I guess. Hi, Chuck."

Chuck didn't seem to notice anything wrong and seemed to completely ignore Marion. "Hi. So, uh, listen, we're pretty good on canned goods for now, but we're down to next to nothing on perishables and-and hygiene supplies. People are not gonna be happy about this. So, what do you think we should do?"

Dean shot a look at his twin, who shrugged. "I-I don't know. Maybe, uh, share? You know, like at a kibbutz."

Chuck finally caught on that something wasn't right. "Wait a minute. Aren't you supposed to be out on a mission right now?"

"Absolutely. And I will be."

Chuck's attention focused behind Dean. "Uh-oh."

A dark-haired woman stomped up and swung at Dean. "Whoa! Jeez! Easy, lady!" Dean exclaimed, ducking behind the prophet.

"Risa." Chuck provided.

"Risa?"

"You spent the night in Jane's cabin last night, didn't you?" She accused.

"Uh, what? I-I don't- did I?" Dean stammered. Chuck nodded. Marion rolled her eyes.

"I thought we had a 'connection'." Risa threw obnoxious air quotes. "Oh, and who's this? You got a connection with her, too?!"

"You'd better believe it, lady. We've known each other since the womb, so..." Marion said, sarcastically.

"Look, I'm sure that we do, have a connection." Dean said, putting his hands up.

"Yeah?" Risa didn't seem to buy it.

"Hi, Risa." Chuck smiled.

"Screw you." 

"Oh, jeez. I'm getting busted for stuff I haven't even done yet." Dean muttered as Risa stalked away.

"What?" Chuck asked.

"Uh, never mind. Hey, Chuck, is... Cas still here?" Dean asked.

"Yeah. I don't think Cas is going anywhere. You know where his cabin is."

"I don't, Chuck." Marion said, smiling and brushing her hair out of her face.

Chuck blushed as he pointed to a cabin across the way. "Right over there."

"Thanks."

"You look really good, Marion. Like, I expected..."

"Super skinny, pale... mohawk?" 

"Kinda, yeah."

"Well, thank the gods that's not true." She winked as she followed Dean toward the cabin.

The door was made of beads and there was a circle of women sitting around Castiel on the floor. "So, in this way, we're each a fragment of total perception. Just, uh, one compartment in that dragonfly eye of group mind. Now, the key to this total... shared perception, it's, um, it's surprisingly physical." Castiel's eyes shot up to fall on Dean and Marion stepped back away from his field of vision. Castiel was blue around the edges, but faintly. He wasn't brilliant and glowing like he should have been. "Oh. Excuse me, ladies. I think I need to confer with our fearless leader for a minute. Why not go get washed up for the orgy?"

The twins raised an eyebrow at each other as the women all got up to leave. "You're all so beautiful." Castiel crooned before standing and stretching his back with a grunt.

The Winchesters stepped into the cabin. "What are you, a hippie?" Dean asked, his eyebrows knit together.

"I thought you'd gotten over trying to label me." 

Dean cleared his throat. "Cas, we got to talk."

"Whoa. Strange." Cas said, turning to look at them.

"What?"

"You... are not you. Not now you, anyway." 

"No! Yeah. Yes, exactly." Dean said, excitedly.

"What year are you from?"

"We're from 2009." Marion provided.

"Who did this to you? Is it Zachariah?" 

"Yes."

"Interesting."

"Oh, yeah, it's friggin' fascinating. Now. Why don't you strap on your angel wings and fly us back to our page on the calendar?"

Castiel turned away, laughing bitterly. "I wish I could just, uh, strap on my wings, but I'm sorry, no dice."

"He's not an angel, anymore, Dean."

"What, are you stoned?"

"Uh, generally, yeah."

"What happened to you?"

"Life." The sound of trucks pulling up outside distracted Dean from finishing the conversation, but Marion didn't follow him as he pushed through the beaded curtain. Castiel looked at her, wistfully. "I think I forgot the color of your eyes."

"Well, drugs will make you forget... isn't that why you take them?" Marion swallowed hard. She stepped to the curtain, looking out. "So, I guess you aren't a virgin, anymore."

Castiel blinked at her, then smiled. "You're jealous."

She shrugged. "We were... virgins together, you know?" 

"And we _stopped_  being virgins together. You were my first, Marion." Castiel put a hand on her shoulder and she turned back to him. 

"Then, why are you here? Why am I down in Louisiana, killing myself with Fergus in my bed and Garth as my lieutenant?" 

"You can see I have very little grace left. When I realized what was happening, I knew I wouldn't be able to fly between New Orleans and Camp Chitaqua anymore. I had to choose between you and Dean."

Marion looked down. "I think you made to right choice. Dean obviously needed you more than I did."

"You said that back then." Castiel put two fingers on her chin and tilted her head up to look him in the eye. "You made me choose him, because he would need me more."

"Guess I... she... hasn't changed much." 

"Still putting everyone else above yourself?"

"She's starving herself. Giving her life so that her soul can haunt that building." 

"So that the building will stay safe." Castiel smiled at her as a gunshot rang out and Dean shouted outside. Marion jumped slightly, but didn't move. "You look wonderful. You wouldn't happen to-"

"Marion, get your ass out here!" Dean yelled. 

"It always was hard to get time to ourselves." Castiel said as she pulled away and headed outside. 

Marion stepped down the stairs as the soldiers stared at the two Deans. Future Dean was glaring, looking exactly like their father. "Hiya, D. Long time, right? When's the last time-"

"All right, shut up. Get in the cabin." He ordered, grabbing the other Dean and pushing him into the cabin. He slammed the door and growled. "What the hell was that?"

"What the hell was _that_? You just shot a guy in cold blood."

"We were in an open quarantine zone. Got ambushed by some Croats on the way out." Dean gave a confused look. "Croats. Croatoans. One of 'em infected Yeager."

"How do you know?" Marion asked, quietly.

"'Cause after a few years of this, I know. I started seeing symptoms about half an hour ago. Wasn't gonna be long before he flipped. I didn't see the point in troubling a good man with bad news."

"'Troubling a good man'? You just blew him away in front of your own people. Don't you think that freaked them out a bit?"

"It's 2014. Plugging some Croat, it's called commonplace. Trading words with my friggin' clone, that might have freaked them out a little."

"All right, look-" Dean started.

"No, you look. This isn't your time. It's mine. You don't make the decisions. I do. So, when I say stay in, you stay in." General Winchester ordered, looking from himself to Marion. He turned around, grabbing three cups and a bottle of whiskey.

"All right, man. I'm sorry. Look, I-I'm not trying to mess you, me, _us_  up here."

"I know." Future Dean poured liquor in the glasses and set them on the table.

"It's just been a really wacky weekend."

"Tell me about it." The trio picked up their glasses and drank.

"What was the mission, D.?" Marion asked, setting the glass down.

Future Dean looked around like he was debating whether or not to tell, before opening his bag and pulling out an antique revolver. She'd never seen it before but she was certain it was 

"The Colt?" Her Dean asked.

"The Colt." The other Dean confirmed.

"Where was it?"

"Everywhere. They've been moving it around. Took me five years, but... I finally got it. And tonight, tonight, I'm gonna kill the Devil. We're gonna host a meeting of the key players, _my_  key players, and since Zachariah felt the need to send you and you just _had_ to show yourself to my people, you've both been recruited."

****************

Marion sat in a chair in the back as people began to file into the room. Castiel was the first. He stopped and stared for a moment before sitting down. "How was the orgy?" She asked, quietly.

"Less enjoyable than it usually is." 

Marion shook her head at the idea of her angel actually participating in an orgy, then focused on General Winchester who was standing over the Colt. "So, that's it? That's the Colt?"

"If anything can kill Lucifer, this is it."

"Great. Have we got anything that can _find_  Lucifer?" Risa asked, her voice irritated.

"Are you okay?" Future Dean asked.

"Oh, we were in, uh, Jane's cabin last night, and apparently we and... Risa have a connection." Dean filled in. Castiel smiled, looking at his lap.

"You want to shut up?" Dean raised his hands in a surrendering motion. Future Dean glared at himself before continuing. "We don't have to _find_ Lucifer. We know where he is. The demon that we caught last week, he was one of the Big Guy's entourage. He knew."

"So, a demon tells you where Satan's gonna be, and you just believe it?" Risa asked.

"Oh, trust me, he wasn't lying." General Winchester said, confidently.

"And how do you know?" Marion asked, quietly.

"Exactly! What makes you so confident?" Risa asked.

"Our fearless leader, I'm afraid, is all too well schooled in the art of getting to the truth." Castiel answered.

"Torture?" Dean asked, standing and stepping forward. "Oh, so we're-we're torturing again." Future Dean gave Past Dean an unamused look. "No, that's-that's good. Classy." Dean said, which caused Cas to start laughing.

Future Dean turned his glare to the ex-angel, who sobered slightly. "What? I like 'past you'."

The general pulled out a map and slapped it onto the table. "Lucifer is here. Now... I know the block and I know the building."

"Oh, good. It's right in the middle of a hot zone." Castiel said, sarcastically, as he leaned forward and looked at the map.

"Crawling with Croats, yeah. You saying my plan is reckless?"

"Are you saying we, uh, walk in straight up driveway, past all the demons and the Croats, and we shoot the Devil?"

"Yes."

"Okay, if you don't like, uh, 'reckless', I could use 'insouciant', maybe." Marion couldn't hold back a giggle, which earned her a glare from her future twin.

"Are you coming?" He asked, bluntly.

"Of course. But why is _he_? I mean, he's you five years ago. If something happens to him, you're gone, right?" 

"He's coming. And so is she." 

"Okay." Castiel said, standing. "Well, uh. I'll get the grunts moving." 

"We're loaded and on the road by midnight."

"All righty." Castiel said as he and Risa walked out.

"Why _are_  you taking us?" Marion asked, standing.

"Relax. You'll be fine." Future Dean began to pack his bag. "Zach's looking after you, right?"

"Yeah, _me_." Dean said. "But that's not what we mean. I want to know what's going on."

"Yeah, okay." Future Dean conceded. "You're coming because I want you two to see something. I want you to see our brother."

"Sam? I thought he was dead." Dean responded as Marion looked down.

"Sam didn't _die_  in Detroit. He said 'yes'."

"'Yes'?" Realization washed over Dean's face. "Wait. You mean..."

"That's right. The big 'yes', to the Devil. Lucifer's wearing him to the prom."

"Why would he do that?"

"Wish I knew. But now, we don't have a choice. It's in him, and it's not getting out." Future Dean picked up the Colt as Marion took a deep breath, tears threatening her eyes. "And we've got to kill him, Dean. And you need to see it, the whole damn thing, how bad it gets... so you can do it different."

"What do you mean?" 

"Zach said he was gonna bring you back, right? To '09?"

"Yeah."

"Well, when you get back home, you say 'yes'. You hear me? Say 'yes' to Michael."

"That's crazy. If I let him in, then Michael fights the Devil. The battle's gonna torch half the planet." 

"Look around you, man. Half the planet's better than no planet, which is what we have now. If I could do it over again, I'd say 'yes' in a heartbeat."

"So, why don't you?" Marion asked.

"I've tried! I've shouted 'yes' 'til I was blue in the face! The angels aren't listening! They just... left. Gave up! It's too late for me, but you... either of you-"

"Oh, no." Dean started.

"There's got to be another way." Marion and Dean finished.

Future Dean stared at his past self. "Yeah, that's what I thought. I was cocky. Never actually thought I'd lose. But I was wrong. Dean. I was wrong. I'm begging you. Say 'yes'." His eyes went dark as he shook his head, slightly. "But you won't. 'Cause I didn't. And neither did Marion. Because that's just not us, is it?" He said, before walking out, bag in hand.

Marion put her hand on Dean's shoulder. "He said 'yes'." Dean whispered.

"Yeah. Marion told me in Louisiana."

"And you didn't tell me?" He pulled away, looking hurt.

"You thought he was dead and you didn't tell _me_." Marion shook her head. "Dean. We have to talk about this, now."

"Talk about... our brother said 'yes' to Satan! What can that-"

"He said 'yes' because we weren't there to stop him!" She exclaimed. Dean turned to her, angrily. "No, don't look at me like that. I went to New Orleans and never left. I grabbed as many people as I could. Saved as many as I could for as long as I could, just like Bobby said we should, but it wasn't enough. I softened. I gave my everything, right down to my life, to keep those people safe. You... you hardened like a damn rock, to the point of shooting your men in the head without a word. And Sam-" She slammed her on the table. "Sam was weak. Sam has no one if he doesn't have us and we abandoned him. We knew, _knew_  that Lucifer was trying to get him as a vessel and we still didn't help him. It's our fault!" 

Dean's gaze was cold, but Marion didn't let it stop her. "Future you says we have to change shit when we get back? Fine, we change it! We get back. We find Sam. We keep him strong!"

"You think we're stronger-"

"I know we are. Dean... You and I survived Hell. If anyone can keep Sammy from letting Lucifer in, it's us. If anyone can keep you from saying 'yes', it's me and Sam. And me, Dean I'm down for two of them. And yeah, neither of them _want_ me, really, but... we can keep each other strong. All of us."

Dean looked down. "Okay. Let's... let's just survive until we get back to the past and then we can... talk about... _maybe_  talking to Sam."

"I'll take it." Marion gave a little smile and patted Dean's shoulder. "Okay. Let's go help you kill the Devil."

**********************************


	25. First Time

Marion and Dean walked out to the line of trucks as everyone loaded up to head out. Chuck walked up, clipboard in hand. "So, you're really from oh-nine?" 

"Yeah, 'fraid so." Dean responded, as Castiel walked to the driver's seat of a pickup truck loaded down with guns.

"Some free advice? You ever get back there? You _hoard_ toilet paper. You understand me? _Hoard it_. Hoard it like it'd made of gold. 'Cause it is." 

"Thank you, Chuck." Dean said, insincerely. 

"Oh, you'll thank me, all right. Mark my words."

"I'll see you around." Dean said, getting into the truck.

"Yeah. Okay. Hey, Marion?" Chuck stopped her with a hand on her shoulder as she went to climb into the truck after her twin. She turned to him with a smile. 

"Yeah, Chuck?"

"Look, I... I know that things are different _now_ than they were five years ago, but... I don't know when it's gonna be the actual end and I'd never forgive myself for passing up another opportunity, 'cause I was too much of a wimp to try back then, so..." He rambled before he grabbed her head and pulled her into a messy kiss. He pulled back, gave a satisfied sigh and walked away hugging his clipboard. Marion blinked several times before getting in the truck, climbing over Dean to sit in the middle. Dean slammed the door and all of the cars pulled off in a line. 

"So... how was that?" Dean asked, quietly.

Marion gave a look to Cas, who kept his eyes on the road. "Not as bad as I imagined."

Castiel reached in front of her and grabbed a bottle of pills from the console, popping the top as he drove and taking a handful of them. "Let me see those." Dean demanded.

"You want some?" Cas offered, clearing his throat and handing the bottle over behind Marion's head.

"Amphetamines?" Dean asked, examining the bottle.

"It's the perfect antidote to that absinthe."

"Mmm. Don't get me wrong, Cas. I uh, I'm happy that the stick is out of your ass, but... what's going on, w-with the drugs and the orgies and the love-guru crap?" Dean asked. Cas laughed. "What's so funny?"

"Marion told you, I'm not an angel anymore. I went mortal."

"What does that even mean? _How_ did you go mortal?" Dean asked.

"I think it had something to do with the other angels leaving. But when they bailed, my mojo just kind of- fsshhew!- drained away. And now, you know, I'm practically human. I mean, Dean, I'm all but useless. Last year, broke my foot, laid up for two months."  Marion chuckled ruefully as Dean sighed out a 'Wow.' "Yeah."

"So, you're human. Well, welcome to the club." Dean mumbled. 

"Thanks. Except I used to belong to a much better club, and now I'm powerless. I'm hapless. I'm hopeless. I mean, why the hell _not_ bury myself in women and decadence, right? It's the end, baby. That's what decadence is for. Why not bang a few gongs before the lights go out? But then that's, that's just how I roll." Cas finished with a drugged-out smile.

~~~~~~~~~~~~

They came into the city and parked, grabbing their weapons and walking through the streets in a loose V-formation. There were no Crotes, no demons. It was no good. Every step through this 'Hot Zone' without confrontation made Marion nervous, but she didn't voice it. They made it through the entire city without incident, stopping outside of the Jackson County Sanitarium. Future Dean pointed at the building. "There. Second-floor window. We go in there." He said, handing off a pair of binoculars to Castiel.

"You sure about this?" Risa asked.

"They'll never see us coming. Trust me." Future Dean assured. Marion caught her Dean's eyes, who nodded to show he caught it, too. "Now, weapons check. We're on the move in five."

"Hey, uh, _me_. Can we talk to you for a sec?" Marion followed the Deans away from the group as everyone started to check their ammo and weapons. "Tell us what's going on." 

"What?"

"We know you. You're lying to these people and to us." Marion accused.

"Is that so?" 

"Yeah. See, I know your lying expressions. I've seen them in the mirror. Now, there's something you're not telling us." Dean said.

"I don't know what you're talking about." Future Dean denied.

"Oh, really? Well, we don't seem to be the only members of your posse with some questions, so, uh, maybe we'll just take our doubts over to them." The twins started to walk away, but future Dean stopped them.

"Okay, whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa. Wait."

"What?" Marion snapped.

"Take a look around you. This place should be white-hot with Crotes. Where are they?"

"They cleared a path for us." Marion offered.

"Which means that this is-" Her Dean continued.

"A trap. Exactly." Future Dean finished.

"Well, then we can't go through the front." The twins said, together.

"Oh, _we're_ not. _They_ are." He looked, pointedly at the group. "They're the decoys. You and me, the three of us are going in through the back."

Marion and Dean looked at the general. "You mean you're gonna feed your friends into a meat grinder? Cas, too? You want to use their deaths as a diversion?" Marion was battling tears at the thought of Cas dying.

"Oh, man, something is broken in you." Her Dean growled. "You're making decisions that I would _never_ make. I wouldn't sacrifice my friends."

"You're right. _You_ wouldn't. It's one of the main reasons we're in this mess, actually." General Dean growled back.

"These people count on you. They trust you." Marion whispered.

"They trust me to kill the Devil and to save the world, and that's exactly what I'm gonna do."

"No. Not like this, you're not. We're not gonna let you." Her Dean spat at him.

"Oh, really?"

"Yeah." The twins responded. Future Dean wasted no time bashing Marion with the butt of his rifle and slugging Dean, both of them going down.

They woke to the sound of gunfire in the distance. They rubbed their heads and stood, slightly disoriented. "You okay?" Marion asked, as they ran for the sanitarium. Dean didn't answer, his eyes focused on the flashes of gunfire in the building. 

"Come on." He grabbed her hand and pulled her toward the back of the building. They both stopped short as they came upon a figure in white snapping Future Dean's neck with a white-clad foot. Marion pulled away as tears started to pour, uncontrollably, down her face. 

Lucifer turned to them, a small smile on his lips. "Oh. Hello, Dean. Marion." His smile turned more amused as he looked at them, thunder and lightning above them. "Aren't you a surprise." He disappeared, reappearing behind them. "You two have come a long way to see this, haven't you?" Dean turned around to look at what used to be their brother, but Marion couldn't look. He was stronger in this vessel and she couldn't see past the tears. Lucifer stared at them.

"Well, go ahead. Kill us." Dean challenged.

"Kill _you_?" Lucifer looked down at the dead body. "Don't you think that'd be a little... redundant? And Marion, that crying thing has always just tickled me." The archangel sighed. "I'm sorry. It must be painful, speaking to me in this... shape. But it _had_ to be your brother. It had to be."

"Only because I wouldn't-" Marion started, trying to wipe at her eyes as Lucifer reached for Dean's shoulder. 

"You don't have to be afraid of me, Dean. What do you think I'm going to do?" Lucifer ignored Marion, walking away from the twins to examine a rose.

"I don't know. Maybe, deep-fry the planet?" Dean responded.

"Why?" Lucifer turned back to Dean as Marion finally cleared her tears enough to see what was happening. "Why would I want to destroy this stunning thing... beautiful in a trillion different ways... the last perfect handiwork of God?" There was silence as the angel looked at the twins. "You ever hear the story of how I fell from grace?"

"Oh, good God, you're not gonna tell us a bedtime story, are you? My stomach's almost out of bile." Dean quipped.

"You know why God cast me down? Because I loved him. More than anything. And then God created..." Lucifer smiled. "...you. The little... hairless apes, and then he asked all of us to bow down before _you_. To love _you_ , more than _him_. And I said, 'Father, I can't.' I said, 'These human being are flawed, murderous.' And for that, God had Michael cast me into Hell. Now, tell me, does the punishment fit the crime? Especially, when I was right? Look at what six billion of you have done to this thing, and how many of you blame _me_ for it." 

"Bullshit." Marion muttered, blinking rapidly to see Lucifer's smug smirk on her baby brother's face.

Dean grabbed Marion's sleeve and pulled her closer to him, finally noticing her tear-induced semi-blindness. "You're not fooling us, you know that, with this 'Sympathy-For-The-Devil' crap. We know what you are."

"What am I?"

"You're the same thing, only bigger. The same brand of cockroach we've been squashin' our whole lives. An ugly, evil, belly-to-the-ground, supernatural piece of crap."

"The only difference between them and you..." Marion chuckled, giving up the fight and just closing her eyes. "...is the size of your ego."

Lucifer smiled. "I like you two. I get what the other angels see in you. Goodbye. We'll meet again soon."

"You better kill me now!" Dean exclaimed. 

"Pardon?" Lucifer turned back.

"You better kill me now, or I swear we will find a way to kill you. And we won't stop."

"I know you won't. I know neither of you will say yes to Michael, either. And I know you won't kill Sam. Whatever you do, you will always end up here. Whatever choices you make, whatever details you alter, we will always end up... here. I win. So, I win."

"You're wrong." The twins said, their voices breaking.

"See you in five years." Lucifer disappeared in a flash of lightning. 

Marion wiped at her eyes and opened them to look at Dean, who was wiping at his eyes. "Are you okay?" She whispered.

Dean just shook his head and turned around as Zachariah appeared. The angel placed two fingers on Dean's forehead and suddenly, Marion appeared in her New Orleans extended stay motel room. She felt dirty looking around the place that had once felt like home, unable to keep images of her starving self out of her head. She packed, quickly, and dropped her keys at the desk without a word. She was getting into her car when her cell phone rang. "Yeah, Dean?"

"We're meeting with Sam and getting this 'Free Will' shit back on the road. 'Winchesters United Against Heaven's Bullshit'. You gonna meet us at Bobby's or what?" 

"Where are you meeting with Sam?" Marion asked, pulling out of the parking lot and heading for the interstate. She was happy that they were all gonna be back together. Happy that Dean wasn't looking at this as an option, but an imperative. They _needed_ to be together. It was their only shot.

"Why don't you tell me where _you_ are, and Sam and I will meet up with you?"

"I'm in Louisiana, of course, but I'm not gonna hang out in America's Boot for hours while you guys fix your issues. We've all got issues and they all need to be addressed, so where are we meeting, D.?"

"St. Louis. I'll pick up Sammy and we'll head straight to meet you in St. Louis. Okay, Pony?"

"Yeah. Okay. I'll head for Missouri. Don't leave me waiting."

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

They fell back into their lives together, easily. Searching for the Colt between cases, including the Leshii who had attacked Sam as Ghandi and tried to attack Dean as their father. The forest god had been perplexed that Marion didn't have a hero. "I don't idolize. It only leaves you open for disappointment." Then there was the antichrist, who turned Cas into a toy statue. Marion was happy when Jesse disappeared. He chose not to fight. He chose not to have the life that they'd had. It was a hard few weeks, peppered with Marion wondering what Mohawk had meant when she said, "I wish he'd called me at the beginning. I could've gotten it for him." in reference to the Colt. She went over every possible meaning, wondering if Lilith hid it somewhere she knew about. 

When Dean found the case in Wellington, Ohio, where a man's head had been ripped off by a 'bear', after he was chased through the woods and into his house, up the stairs and into his bedroom, they all agreed that it would be a good one for distraction. They checked in at the Day-Z Motel and started to dress in their suits. Marion got dressed quickly and was putting on modest make-up when Dean switched on the TV to a hospital drama. He sat on Sam's bed and watched it, completely lost in the scene, which Marion could see in her mirror was a scene of two doctors heavily making out in an elevator. 

"What are you watching?" Sam asked, walking out of the bathroom buttoning his shirt cuffs. 

"It's a hospital show. 'Dr. Sexy, MD'. I think it's based on a book."

Sam chuckled. "When did you hit menopause?"

"It's called channel surfing." Dean defended, standing up to turn off the TV. Sam grabbed his suit jacket off of Dean's bed as Marion put the finishing touches on her eyeliner. "You ready?"

"Are you?" Sam shot back, a little smirk on his lips. They exited, in birth order, and Marion slipped into the backseat. 

The sheriff didn't understand why they were there. He didn't get why it was of interest to the FBI. "One more time. The FBI is here, why, exactly?"

"Might have something to do with one of your locals getting his head ripped off." Dean responded.

"Bill Randolph died from a bear attack." The sheriff was adamant.

"How sure are you that it was a bear?" Sam asked.

"What else would it be?"

"Well, whatever it was..." Marion started, a condescending tone to her words. "...it chased Mr. Randolph through the woods, smashed through his front door, followed him up the stairs and killed him in his bedroom. Is that _common_ , a bear doing all that?"

"Depends how pissed off it is, I guess. Look, the Randolphs live way up in high country. You got trout runs that'll make a grown man weep..." He looked directly at Marion. "...and bears."

"Right. Now, what about Mrs. Randolph? File says she saw the whole thing." Sam asked.

"Yes, she did." The sheriff confirmed. "My heart goes out to that poor woman."

"She said bear?" Dean asked. 

The sheriff hesitated. "Kathy Randolph went through a hell of a trauma. She's confused."

"What did she say?" Sam asked.

"Like I said, she's confused. She's traumatized. I won't repeat it... for _her_ sake."

"We're gonna need to question her ourselves, then. You understand." Marion smiled, but there was a hint of "Don't fuck with me" in her eyes.

"I'll go get her, bring her in. You talk to her here. Don't wanna traumatize her anymore." The sheriff said, before walking away.

Marion sat next to the woman, trying her best to keep her features soft and her tone even. "Okay. Kathy. What did you see? It wasn't a bear. Was it?"

"No. I-it must've been a bear. I mean, what else could it have been?"

"Mrs. Randolph, what did you _think_ it was?"

The woman sighed. "No. I-I remember clearly now. It was definitely a bear."

Marion turned her head so the woman wouldn't see her roll her eyes. Dean just cleared his throat and sat forward. "We're sure it was. But see, it helps us to hear every angle. So, just tell us what you _thought_ you saw."

"It's impossible, but... I could have sworn I saw... the Incredible Hulk." The woman said, hesitantly.

Marion covered her mouth as she started picturing her old 1990s comic book collection. Sam leaned forward, just slightly. "The Incredible Hulk."

"I told you, it's crazy."

"You, um..." Sam cleared his throat, losing his train of thought.

"Bana or Norton?" Dean asked.

"Oh, no, those movies were terrible. The TV Hulk." Kathy answered.

Marion opened her mouth to argue, but Dean carried on. "Lou Ferrigno?"

"Yes."

"Spiky-hair Lou Ferrigno?"

"Yes."

"Huh." Dean looked to Sam.

"You think I'm crazy." 

"No. Uh, no, i-it's just... is... is there, uh, would there be any reason that Lou Ferrigno, the Incredible Hulk, would have a grudge against your husband?" Dean asked.

"No." 

"No." Dean repeated. "Okay, well... it probably _was_ a bear, but we're gonna look into it."

Marion stood, opening the door for Sam and Dean to exit. "By the way, the Norton movie was actually pretty accurate, if you read the-"

"She doesn't wanna hear your comic nerd opinion." Dean said, grabbing Marion's arm and pulling her out of the interview room.

Marion pulled her arm back as they walked out of the police station. "Don't stifle my geekdom, D. Yeah, Abomination wasn't quite right, but the rest of it was pretty good. A lot better than the Bana one and better than Ferrigno and I know that I'm gonna get my GenX card revoked for sayin' it, but it's true. Taking a stuttering body builder and painting him green doesn't give you an Incredible Hulk." She grumbled as they made it to the Impala.

"Okay." Dean said, turning to her. "I recognize and bow to your Marvel Comics nerdery. If you think the Edward Norton Hulk was good, then who am I, who is she, to disagree?"

"Thank you." Marion said, smiling as she got into the back.

"All right, so we need to get some background on the dead guy, 'cause this is definitely not a damn bear." Dean said, dropping into the car.

"You guys get back to the motel and check out Bill Randolph. I will go check out the house, see if there's any clues there." Sam offered. 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Dean and Marion spent two hours watching the middle of a Dr. Sexy marathon before picking up their laptops and going into research mode, with the marathon continuing in the background. "I'm pretty sure Dr. Piccolo needs to get some damn self-respect. Yeah, Dr. Sexy McCowboy Boots is... _sexy_ but come on! He's her attending!" Marion complained as she pulled up incident reports from the local police department. 

"Nah. They belong together. True love doesn't care about chain of command." Dean responded, tapping on his keyboard. 

Marion snorted. "You're such a woman."

"Thanks." Dean rolled his eyes at her, standing to turn off the TV and sit at the table.

Sam entered about ten minutes later. "Hey."

"Find anything?" Dean asked, as Marion shut her laptop and set it on the bed.

"Well, uh, I saw the house."

"And?" The twins asked.

"And there is a giant eight-foot-wide hole where the front door used to be. Almost like, uh..." Sam held his hands out to show width.

"A Hulk-sized hole." Dean finished.

"Maybe. What do you got?"

"Well, it turns out that Bill Randolph had quite the temper." Dean started.

"Dude had two counts of spousal battery, some bar brawls, and court-ordered anger management sessions with a shrink two towns over." Marion said, walking over to Sam and Dean.

"You might say, you wouldn't like him when he's angry." Dean finished, with a small chuckle.

Sam nodded, his hands going to his hips. "So, a hothead getting killed by TV's greatest hothead. Kinda sounds like Just Desserts, doesn't it?" Dean snorted and Marion tried to understand the reference. "It's all starting to make sense."

"How is it starting to make sense?" The twins asked.

"Well, I found something else at the crime scene." Sam put his hand in his coat pocket and pulled out a handful of candy wrappers. "Candy wrappers. Lots of 'em." He finished, dropping them to the table. Marion reached forward and picked up a Twix wrapper as Sam walked away, pulling his coat off. 

Dean grabbed one too. "Just Desserts, sweet tooth, screwing with people before you kill 'em... we're dealing with the Trickster, aren't we?"

"Sure looks like it." Sam responded. 

Dean stood, walking over to Sam as Marion just looked on with confusion. "Good. I've wanted to gank that mother since Mystery Spot." 

"You sure?" Sam asked.

"Yeah. I'm sure."

"No, I mean... are you sure you wanna kill him?"

"Son of a bitch didn't think twice about icing _me_... a thousand times."

"I'm sorry, what?!" Marion interjected.

Her brothers turned to her. "We didn't tell you about the Mystery Spot?" Dean asked, quietly. 

"You didn't want her to freak, remember? Told Bobby to keep it to him-" Sam explained, quietly. 

"What Mystery Spot?" She demanded.

Sam cleared his throat. "Uh, Trickster god, he, uh... made me live the same Tuesday over and over and over and every day... Dean died."

"It's fine. We'll gank him here and never have to worry about him again." Dean assured.

"He _killed_ you... thousands of times, and you haven't ganked him _already_?" Marion asked, angrily.

"Look, guys, it wasn't _real_. So, are we sure-" Sam started.

"What are you saying? If you don't wanna kill him, then what?" Dean asked.

"Talk to him?" Sam suggested.

"What?" The twins exclaimed.

"Think about it. Dean, he's one of the most powerful creatures we've ever met. Maybe we can use him."

"For what?" 

"Okay, Trickster's like a Hugh Hefner type, right? Wine, women, song... maybe he doesn't want the party to end. Maybe, he hates this 'angels and demons' stuff as much as we do. Maybe he'll help us."

"You're serious?" 

"Yeah."

"Ally with the Trickster?"

"Yeah."

"A bloody, violent monster, and you wanna be Facebook friends with him? Nice, Sammy." 

"The world is gonna end, guys. We don't have the luxury of a moral stand. Look, I'm just saying, it's worth a shot. That's all. If it doesn't work, we kill him."

Dean looked over at Marion, who was still seething about the fact that she hadn't been told about this Trickster. He sighed. "How are we gonna find the guy, anyway?"

"Well, he never takes just one victim, right? He'll show." Sam answered.

Marion swallowed her anger and stepped forward. "You two are going to tell me _everything_ about this Trickster. Every victim, everything he's ever said to you, every Groundhog Day you went through, Sammy. All of it. I'm not going into this blind."

Sam and Dean looked between each other. "You tell her about Crawford Hall, Dean. I'll grab wood for stakes."

"Yeah, and you get to tell her about Tuesday." Dean said, flopping down on his bed. 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Marion sat on Sam's bed, sharpening a stake. She was still mildly miffed that they'd never mentioned this Trickster to her, before, but she was sort of excited to have a chance at the thing. The police scanner sitting on the table in front of Sam squeaked, then a voice came through. "Um, Dispatch? I... I got a possible 187 out here at the old paper mill on Route 6?" 

"Hey." Sam sat up straight and the twins stopped their work.

"Roger that. What are you looking at there, son?"

"Honestly, Walt, I... I wouldn't even know how to describe what I'm seeing. Just... send everybody."

"All right. Stay calm, stay by your car. Help's on the way."

Sam turned off the scanner and turned to his siblings. "That sounds weird." Dean said.

"Weird enough to be our guy?" Sam responded. 

Marion was up, grabbing her weapons and heading out to the parking lot before Dean even had a chance to stand. When Dean pulled up in front of the abandoned warehouse, they all worried at the still-abandoned look of the place. "There was a murder her, and there's no police cars. There's nobody." Dean said, walking around to the trunk. "How's that look to you?"

"Crappy." Sam answered.

"Like a trap." Marion said, looking around, her stake still in hand. Dean handed Sam a flashlight and a stake from the trunk, then a flashlight to Marion and shut the trunk, holding on to his own duo of wood and light. They headed for the building, pulling open a door with a large 4 on it and walking inside.

Marion was suddenly alone in a bar, her flashlight and stake gone. She turned around, confused. "What the fuck?" There was no door. She ran for the window but it wouldn't open. She grabbed a chair next, trying to break the window. The chair broke, instead. "What the _fuck_?!" 

"Calm down, sweet thing." A voice behind her called. She turned, quickly, her arms raising into a fighting stance. The trickster rolled his eyes at her and ran a hand through his dark blond hair. "Sit down, Marion. Have a drink." He gestured to a table, where a bottle of Scotch and a cup suddenly appeared. 

She just stared at him. "You're not a demigod." 

He sighed, a pink drink with an umbrella appearing in his hand. "Yeah, that's why you're _here_ and you're brothers aren't. Sit down. We need to talk."

Marion dropped into the chair closest to her and pulled the cork out of the bottle, taking a gulp without ever looking away from the hazel-eyed man as he sat in a chair at the next table over. "You... look so familiar."

"We met. In New Orleans, after Dean died."

Marion gasped. "Stig? Stig Anderson? You're the Trickster."

"Guilty." The Trickster smiled as he sipped at his sweet cocktail. "We gotta talk."

"About what? How glad I am that I didn't take you up on that invite to your hotel?" She chugged down another several gulps of the scotch. 

"Hey, I'm still real upset about that rejection. I was a perfect gentleman and you turned me down."

"I was barely a year out of Hell and wasn't really interested in getting laid by some Scandinavian dude I'd just met, okay? Besides, Dean said you're perfectly adept at creating your own beautiful women." She leaned forward, elbows resting on her knees. "Look... what's going on? And what should I call you? I'm assuming... not 'Stig'."

"I've always been partial to 'Loki'." He responded, causing Marion to chuckle. "And what's going on is... the world is ending."

"Uh-huh. And Loki, the future perpetrator of Ragnarok, you care so much?"

"Well, we all know that the world isn't ending the way the Vikings called it. Not ending how the Hindus thought it would, either." He leaned forward, mimicking her stance. "Look, Marion, you might not like it, your brothers might not like it, but this is the end."

"No, it's not. I've seen the end. And we're avoiding it. We're gonna keep everybody from saying-"

"That's not the right idea, here." Loki interrupted. "Those guys _need_ to say 'yes'."

"Are you shitting me?" She dropped the scotch back onto the table and stood, angrily. "That's the stupidest thing I've ever heard! Are you really that hard-up for chaos that you need to manufacture it by putting us through the ringer?"

"Oh, come on. That is _not_ what's going on here." Loki sighed. "Listen, your brothers were born for this. Literally, this is why they were born."

Marion scoffed. "And what am I, chopped liver?" She stomped around the table, angrily. "I'm kinda sick of this. Who the fuck do you think you are?" She walked over to the wall and started to scratch at it, lightly, with both hands. "I'm gonna pick this apart. It's fake. I can tell this is an illusion."

"Come on, sit down. I know how you feel. I was a middle child, too." Marion turned, but she didn't sit down. She leaned against the wall and stared at him. There was something more than familiar about him. More than just Stig Anderson. "Look, if your brothers just play the parts that they were written, you can live, everyone goes to paradise after. Everyone who's left gets Raptured. Doesn't that sound nice?"

"That sounds _weak_. Look, I've been given an opportunity for 'paradise'. I jumped off the Grand Canyon to get away from it. We need to _fight_."

"Aren't you _tired_ of fighting, though? You've been fighting for centuries." 

"Yeah, I have. What's that got to do with anything? If we don't fight, half the world burns. If we don't fight, my brothers die."

"They started this!" Loki set his drink on the table and pulled a Caramello bar out of his pocket. "Dean popped the first lock, Sam threw the last one, but you didn't do anything wrong, Lollipop. You had nothing to do with starting the End. If you back off and let your brothers say 'yes', then we can get this _all_ over with and move on to whatever's next."

"Nothing's next. If Lucifer wins, everyone dies, the angels flee, and Crotes swarm _everything_. Michael wins, half the planet dies, the other half goes to the afterlife. Either way, I lose my family!"

"So what? They suck, anyway." He said, taking a bite of the chocolate bar.

"Oh, you must be a joy of a brother. You want _your_ brothers to die just because they suck sometimes? I know they suck because _all_ siblings suck! Yours can't be any better than mine."

"No, they're worse. So, what? Look, Honey, your brothers have one job and that's-"

"Hunting. Saving people. Saving the world. That's our job. None of this bullshit about vessels. That's not us. That's what Heaven wants for us, but God gave us free will for a motherfucking reason, Loki, and we intend to use it."

Loki stood and sighed, dramatically. He walked over to stand in front of her. "I wish it were that simple, Sugar, but it's not."

Marion reared back and head-butted him. "I'm not your sugar, your honey, your fucking lollipop or any sweet concoction, you piece of shit! I want my goddamn brothers, now!" She finished, as Loki stumbled backward, then looked up at her, glowing bright white-blue around the edges. "Oh." She whispered.

"You couldn't possibly ignore that, could you?"

"You're an... an angel, aren't you?"  Loki scratched at his head. "You're different than the other angels. You're..." Marion started to chuckle, which quickly rolled into an uncontrolled laughter.

"What are you laughing about?"

Marion slid into one of the chairs, still laughing. "The Trickster. The asshole who's been _killing_ assholes and tortured Sam for months... is the archangel who disappeared from Heaven before Lucifer was even cast down! You're _Gabriel_!"

He stared at her for a few moments. "How could you possibly know that?"

"Lucifer told me about you." She said, sitting up straight and wiping at her eyes. "Middle brother. Didn't take sides. Disappeared so that he wouldn't be stuck in the middle, anymore. Because it was never your fight, and now that it's... all happening again... you just want it all to be over, right? You plannin' to go back home if Michael wins? Is _that_ what this is about? You want my brothers to get it all over with so that you can go to Heaven?"

"I don't care about Heaven. It hasn't been home since Dad bounced. I just want someone to win. Luci or Mike, either way, it's gonna suck, but at least it will be over, you know?"

"You're an asshole. You've obviously got free will, Gabriel. You've been using it to pretend you're Loki and killing assholes in admittedly humorous ways. You're trying to manipulate my brothers into giving away their will. They're not gonna deal with it very well."

Gabriel shrugged. "Guess we'll see how they feel in a few days."

"A few day?! You can't keep us here for a few-"

"I can do what I want, _sugar_. I'm an archangel." He snapped his fingers and disappeared. 

She threw her hands up in the air and groaned in exasperation. "This is such  _bullshit_!"

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Marion tried to pull the illusion apart, tried to see past it, but it was too good. Archangel illusions were obviously of a higher caliber. She resolved to just sit at the bar and drink. "They're coming along pretty well. I think they're getting the hint." Gabriel showed up, suddenly sitting next to her at the bar. 

"Oh, goody." She muttered taking another swig of whiskey. "How long's it been?"

"Technically? Several days." He snapped his fingers and a bowl of fruit appeared on the bar in front of him. "You hungry?" She just grunted at him. "Okay. I get it. You're mad at me." She glared at him with the sides of her eyes. "How about I make it up to you, sugar?" He snapped again and the bar that she'd been stuck in for the last several days became a bedroom.

"Keep dreamin'." She growled, turning on the barstool to look at the four-post bed with the red silk sheets and heart pillows. 

"Oh, this Casa Erotica setup ain't for me, honey. Had another fly-boy in my ointment. Need to sequester him somewhere, why not with you?" By the time Marion turned to question Gabriel, he was gone, but Castiel was standing in his place and the bar had completed it transformation into a bedroom.

Cas looked around, confused, before his eyes focused in on Marion. "What are you wearing?"

She looked down, finally realizing that her outfit had been replaced by a white lace negligée. She blushed deeply and crossed her arms across her chest to cover herself. " _He_ did this. I wasn't... I was _not_ wearing this." 

"It... looks... good." Cas swallowed and stepped forward.

"Cas, we've gotta..." She swallowed, nervously looking down at her bare arms. "What are you doing here?"

"You and your brothers have been missing for days. I tried calling, but no one answered, so I came to find you. Where are we?"

She looked around the illusion. There were candles burning and a bottle of champagne was sitting in a bucket next to the bed. There were rose petals all over the floor and a bearskin rug in front of a fireplace across the room. "It's an illusion. An incredibly powerful one that I can't... do anything about. So, we're stuck until Gabe lets us out." She moved to sit on the bed, but thought better of it. She didn't want to send the wrong message, so she sat in front of the fire with her back to Castiel. 

"Are you all right?" Cas asked, stepping up behind her.

"I'm... tired and worried about Sam and Dean." She pulled her hair around to one shoulder and looked back at him.

"You say there's no way to break this illusion?" 

"Not that I've figured and I've been here a few days, apparently." 

He sat next to her on the rug and brushed her hair off of her shoulder to hang down her back. "Then, we... have time to... ourselves?"

She turned to him, her green eyes catching his blues. "We're literally by ourselves. No one here to... see or judge or... but, that's not why you said we couldn't... you said I was a distraction."

"There is nothing to distract me from in here." 

"What about your search for God?"

Castiel smiled, softly, as he pulled his coat and suit jacket down his arms. "I'm fairly certain that He is not here." He leaned forward, capturing her lips. She melted into the kiss, twisting herself into his arms and placing one hand on the back of his head and the other on his leg for balance. His tongue came out to lick her lips and she opened them, letting his tongue in to dance across hers. She gave a little squeal as Cas pushed her backward onto the rug, his right hand suddenly behind her head to cushion the impact and his left cascading down her body, every motion being amplified by the lace moving across her skin. His eagerness was evident in more than just the bulge poking her thigh and the insistent way he pushed the lingerie up her body. It was in the way his fingertips gripped the back of her head, the way his lips and tongue slid across her jawline and down her neck, the way he groaned every time her breath caught or she moaned, the way his attention seemed splintered; he didn't know where he wanted to focus. More than any of that, his eagerness was evident in the energy pouring out of his vessel, beautiful blue-white grace seeping out of his skin like his very essence was longing to touch her as much as _he_ was. 

"Cas..." She whimpered, as his left hand found its focus, discovering that her underwear had disappeared when her outfit had been changed. His middle finger delved inside her and he kissed her, roughly, as he rubbed himself against her thigh. 

"No more waiting. Need you." He pulled his hand away, frustration painting his face as he unfastened his pants and pushed them down his thighs. She didn't look at his dick, more enamored with the grace reaching for her as he laid himself over her and looked into her eyes. "Are you-" He started as the head of his cock lined up with her entrance. She nodded, not looking away as her heartbeat raced and she felt his own beat throbbing against her. He put one hand on her shoulder and propped himself up effortlessly with the other and started to swivel his hips forward.

"Fuuuuck." She whimpered, her eyes fluttering closed as he pushed in as far as he could. He pulled back and slammed his hips forward with a grunt. Marion's hands flew to his shoulders and her legs came up to wrap around his waist. Every movement of his hips pulled a moan from her and every moan from her pulled a low groan from him. She grabbed his head and pulled him down for a kiss, whining into his mouth as the hand that was on her shoulder came down to grab her breast. He seemed to enjoy how the nipple hardened immediately under his palm because he turned all of the attention that wasn't on pistoning his hips in an ever-quickening pace to lavishing her breasts with love. "Ca-, oh, fuck, Cas." She pulled her head away from his and muttered to herself, eyes closed and hands grasping to him desperately. 

He dropped his head into the crook of her neck and picked his pace up, again. "Marion... this... I've never felt anything so good..." He muttered into her skin. 

"Oh, fuck, Cas. I'm so..."  Castiel nodded against her neck, licking and sucking at her skin. She brought her right hand between them and let her fingertips cascade lightly across herself. As she fell over the edge, Cas powered through a few more pumps before her tightened muscles brought him crashing over, too, his grace growing bright as he spilled his seed into her. He rolled off of her and pulled her against his chest. She absentmindedly pulled her lingerie down and tried to catch her breath. "That was... well-worth the wait." She whispered.

"I agree."

"I dunno. Kinda came across a bit 'Teens Lose Virginity After School', but I guess they can't all be 'Casa Erotica 8', can they?" Marion's eyes snapped up to the bed, where Gabriel was sitting. She sat up, covering her chest with her arms as Castiel simply glared. Gabriel snapped his fingers and Cas' clothes reappeared on his body. "Sorry, Cassie-boy, don't really wanna spend my time lookin' at _that_."

"Gabe, you need to-" Marion started, but a piece of tape appeared over her mouth and her hands were suddenly cuffed behind her back. 

"Honey, the men are trying to talk." Marion glared at the archangel as he hopped off of the bed and sashayed over in front of Cas, who stood. "She hates it when you pull out the misogyny on her." Gabriel said, his honey eyes dancing with mischief. 

"How do _you_ know that?" The younger angel asked. 

"Oh, the things I know about this woman would definitely surprise you, pretty boy." Marion mumbled under the tape, furiously trying to explain to Cas, but Gabriel just snapped and Cas disappeared. "Seriously, Marion, are you trying _out_ me?" 

Her hands were suddenly free and the tape gone from her mouth. She looked down at herself to find she was wearing her clothes again. "What was the point of that? You brought Cas in, what, so you could perv out watching us?"

Gabriel gasped, a hand going to his chest as he looked offended. "I didn't _watch_ you guys. Cas is my little brother. I watched _you_. And this wasn't about perving out, it was about keeping you happy. You seriously _needed_ this. Do you even realize how fast you guys got busy?" Marion looked down, ashamed. "Hey, hey. Nothin' wrong with a little lovin'. I mean, you went hundreds of years without any. Since I've been out on my own, I don't think I've ever gone more than... a year? Well, if we're talkin' women I didn't create specifically _for_ that." He mused, bending to grab her hand and pull her to her feet. "I thought you might be a little more... agreeable, if you weren't so tense and... unfucked."

She scoffed and pulled her hand out of his. "Ah, yes, I was a bitch because I needed to get laid. That is _the_ most-"

"Sexist thing you've ever heard." Gabriel rolled his eyes as he stepped back from her. "Yeah. Anyway, cupcake, let's talk Apocalypse."

"Yeah. No. It isn't gonna happen. My brothers aren't gonna say 'yes'."

"Well, then, what about... _you_?" He leaned against a bedpost and started absentmindedly tossing M &Ms into his mouth. She looked at him, confused. "I'm an archangel. Really, do you even have to wonder how I know anything about _anything_? I've been around since before Raph and Mikey decided to put your brothers on this path. I've been around long enough to know you're a vessel, too. If you don't want Dean to give it up, why don't you let Michael waltz around in _your_ skin?"

Marion looked down. "I... promised, and besides, I don't want half the world to die. _I_ don't want to die."

"You absolutely certain on that one, sweetcheeks?" 

"What's that supposed to mean?" 

Gabriel pushed away from the bed and stepped in front of her. "You have an air of suicide about you, Marion. You have the whole time I've known you. I'm guessing your time in Hell was a bit different than Dean-o's because you have this very... awkward self-hatred that is only overshadowed by your obsessive need to keep those pricks you call 'brothers' safe. I think, if they died, you'd be base-jumping without a 'chute before Earth completed another mambo around the Sun." 

"I wouldn't kill myself. I'm tired but I'm not weak." Marion couldn't help but think back to the trip to the past. Cas had assumed she was capable of doing that to herself, too.

"Of course, you're _capable_ of it, sugar. Everyone is capable of it, and fine..." He began, dramatically spreading his arms. "...you're not the type to pull a Cobain, definitely not a Sylvia Plath type, but you cannot honestly tell me that you've never thought 'Hunters die on hunts all the time. I could let this thing end me and it'd be over'."

Marion opened her mouth to argue but, Gabriel's eyebrows shot up and he took another step toward her. "'Cause I'm an archangel and I can read your thoughts."

She sighed, heavily. "Fine. You're right. At a couple of my lowest points, when I felt like the monsters had already won, I considered forfeiting, but I wouldn't. I couldn't." She stressed.

"Because Deanie Baby and Sammich need you around. If they _weren't_ around..." He gestured, meaningfully, at her. "Full circle. You keep them alive to keep you alive. It's cute, but... useless. You need to step _up_. If you aren't gonna let Dean say 'yes' to Michael, then it's on you to get it done. Michael needs a vessel, sweetheart, and it might be up to Atlas to get her head out of her ass and be the salvation of Earth. 'Cause Luci's got big plans and you don't really wanna be around when-" His eyes shot to the roof like someone was speaking to him. "Fuck. Castiel is fuckin' persistent. Be right back. Don't lose track of my speech." Gabriel ordered, before disappearing.

When Gabriel reappeared, Marion was sitting on the bed, eating bits of melon from the bowl of fruit. He watched her for a minute, an eyebrow raising as she licked the juice from her fingers. "Where was I?"

She didn't look up at him as she picked up another piece of cantaloupe from the bowl in her lap and sucked it into her mouth. "Something about getting my head out of my ass and letting your brother in." She said, nonchalantly, before picking up another piece of melon. "Did you know that pretty much every melon labeled as a 'Cantaloupe' in America is actually something called a Musk Melon? They taste nothing alike. This... real, fake, or otherwise, is a cantaloupe. I never thought I'd taste one."

She looked up at him, her green eyes sparkling at him as she smiled. "We'll lose this. If the fight happens, we'll lose this. Your brothers, and Heaven as a whole, they don't care about... the little things. The difference between a cantaloupe and a musk melon, a rose and a chrysanthemum... M&Ms and Skittles." She chuckled. "We'd lose. If Michael wins, we lose the little things and that ain't my idea of paradise, Gabe. I'm sorry. I can't do it."

"Wow. You're good. You're like if Sam's rationality had a baby with Dean's attitude and that baby rolled around in sex appeal." Gabriel shrugged, sitting next to her on the bed. He plucked a strawberry from the bowl and it suddenly had whipped cream on it. "Oh, well. Still got your brothers on ice." He finished, popping the fruit in his mouth.

"I don't assume you're having much luck with them, either."

"Eh, they're tough nuts, but I've been crackin' 'em for years." He reached for another strawberry. 

"What are you doing to them, anyway?"

"TV Land. Started 'em in 'Dr. Sexy' and went from there. They just killed my double in 'CSI'. I'm thinkin' 'Knight Rider', next."

"With Dean as Michael. I get it."

"Honestly, I just wanted to see Samsquatch as the car."

"And where's Castiel?" She asked, casually, eating another piece of fruit.

"Fighting for his life  in a pit of despair I created after watching this one trippy movie in the 70s. Why? You need more already?"

"Well, I'm sure if that was the case, I could be taken care of by someone more... experienced." She said, keeping her eyes on the bowl of fruit..

Gabriel gave a dramatic gasp. "Marion Winchester, are you _flirting_ with me?!"

She smile. "If you have to ask, I obviously messed up." She picked up a strawberry and giggled a little as whipped cream appeared on it. Gabriel's eyebrows shot up as her tongue snaked through her lips to lick away the cream.

"You know... I know this is a trick, but I kinda think that mouth might be worth the backlash."

She shook her head. "Not a trick. I wouldn't dare try to trick a Trickster. Think of it as my attempt at bargaining." She offered him the strawberry with a smile. "You take my brothers out of the plot of Pleasantville, you take Cas out of whatever Hell you dropped him in, and you get me. You can dress me up however you want, put me into any fantasy you desire. I'll play along with all of it."

He leaned forward and took a bite of the strawberry. "You hold up your end first. I've been Loki for thousands of years; I know how to avoid a double-cross."

Marion smiled and nodded. "I'm fine with that." She tossed the green end of the strawberry toward the bearskin rug and leaned forward. "But how am I supposed to protect myself from _your_ double-cross?"

"You're just gonna have to trust me."

"Trust you? You're _Loki_ , Gabriel. How could I possibly-"

"Dig deep, Lollipop." He said, leaning in and capturing her lips. He tasted like chocolate and champagne and Marion found herself liking it. It was so different than kissing Crowley, with his sulfur and scotch taste, or Castiel whose mouth tasted of nothing. Gabriel pushed her backward, his tongue never leaving her mouth as he laid his body out over hers. They were still clothed, taking their time to enjoy the simplicity of kissing, when he pulled back, groaning. "Your brothers have the _worst_ timing!" He hopped off the bed and pointed at her. "Don't move."

Marion sat up, hoping her brothers hadn't decided to give up when she'd negotiated an out for them. She waited for 5 minutes on the bed, before she stood, stretching her back. She turned around, suddenly in an old warehouse. Her brothers and Cas were standing in front of a circle of fire, Gabriel in the middle. Dean turned to her and Cas. "You guys okay?"

"I'm fine." Cas answered, as Marion nodded. "Hello, Gabriel."

"Hey, bro. How's the search for Daddy going? Let me guess: Awful." Gabriel responded.

Castiel glared at him, deeply, but Gabriel just gave him a mocking bitch face. Dean looked from Gabriel to Cas and Sam. "Okay, we're out of here. Come on, Sam." 

A panicked look crossed the archangel's face as Dean backed away toward the door. "Uh. Okay? Guys?!" Sam followed, but Marion kept her eyes on Gabriel's. "So, so what? Huh? You're just gonna, you're gonna leave me here forever?"

Dean stopped at the door and turned back to look at him. "No. We're not. 'Cause we don't _screw_ with people the way you do. And for the record? This isn't about some prize fight between your brothers or some destiny that can't be stopped. This is about _you_ being too afraid to stand up to your family!" Dean shouted. He took a deep breath as Marion stepped over to the wall and grabbed an old silver fire extinguisher. Dean nodded at her as she walked over to the circle of fire. "Don't say I never did anything for you." 

As her brothers and Castiel walked out of the building, Marion pulled the pin and aimed the nozzle before she squeezed the extinguisher and proceeded to put the fire out. Gabriel looked at her as the fire went out and he stepped away from the circle. She didn't say anything, just dropped the extinguisher to the ground and followed the men out. Her brothers turned to her as she stepped out. "Where were _you_?" Sam asked.

"A bar. He knew I could see him, didn't want me with you to clue you in before you said 'yes'." 

"It was a bedroom when I was-" Cas started, but Marion covered, quickly.

"Except when he decided I needed to sleep, which is when it became a bedroom."

"So, you knew he was an angel?" Sam asked.

"Yeah. I mean, eventually. I met him before, in Louisiana, and I didn't know, then. I had to bash him in the face to crack his shell and see that archangel grace come through." Dean gave her an impressed smile as he opened the driver's door and slid in. Marion got in the back as Cas disappeared.

"So you spent your whole time hangin out in a bar?" Dean asked.

"Yeah, pretty much." 

"Sexy ladies?" Dean pulled out of the warehouse parking lot. Marion raised an eyebrow at him. "He usually has a bunch of scantily clad, sexy ladies around."

"Not this time. Guess I was all the sexy lady he needed." 

"You didn't..." Sam cut himself off, turning to stare at her.

Marion forced an eye roll. "Please. I _do_ go for angels, but I don't go for pricks." 

"Speaking of... you had some downtime with Cas?" Dean looked in the rearview as he asked. "In a bedroom?"

She sighed, feeling her cheeks warm up. "Yeah, uh... there was no bed... time. Gabriel thought I'd be a distraction for Castiel, but Cas was very persistent in trying to get you out." It wasn't a lie, just a misrepresentation.

Sam gave a look that said he didn't believe her, but he didn't call her out on it, just turning around and watching the road roll by. Marion leaned against the window, watching the lines flash by.


	26. Fans and Plans

Dean pulled the Impala into the parking lot of the Pineview Hotel and they rushed for the building. Dean stopped when he saw three black classic Impalas in a row. "Dean. Come on." Sam said, as they ran for the hotel. Chuck was pacing back and forth in front of the steps. "Chuck! There you are." "Guys?" Chuck's voice broke a bit as he looked up at them.

"What's going on?" The twins asked.

"Uh, nothing. You know, I, uh, was just kinda hangin'. What are you guys doing here?"

"You told us to come." Marion accused.

"Uh, no, I didn't."

"Yeah, you _did_. You texted me. This address, life-or-death situation. Any of this ringing a bell?" Sam asked, forcefully.

"I, I, I didn't send you a text."

"We drove all night!" Dean growled.

"I'm sorry, I don't understand what could... oh, no."

"What?" Dean growled.

"SAM! You made it!!" A shrill voice squealed from the top of the stairs. Marion rolled her eyes as she saw Becky at the entrance to the hotel.

Sam didn't recognize her immediately, then it dawned on him as she ran down in front of him. "Oh, uh, Becky, right?"

"Oh. You remembered." The woman said, enamored. "You've been thinking about me."

Sam looked around for someone to help. "I..."

"It's okay. I can't get you out of my head, either." Becky finished.

"Chuck, did you leave this  _stain_ alone with your phone?" Marion growled.

"Wow, that's kinda harsh, Mare. You-"

"She wants me back in Hell, Chuck. I got no love for her."

"Well, she's _really_  mean." Becky defended.

"Yeah, you know, I _am_ really mean. So why are you fucking with me?" Marion glared at the small blond woman.

"Um, did you take my phone?" Chuck accused.

"I just borrowed it... from your pants."

"Becky." Chuck sighed, shaking his head

"What? They're gonna wanna see it!"

"See what?" The Winchesters all asked.

"Oh, my god. I love it when they talk at the same time!" Becky squealed.

Marion resisted the urge to punch her as a man with a clipboard walked out of the building to stand at the top of the steps. "Hey, Chuck? Come on, pal. It's show time."

Becky gave an excited jump and started up the stairs. Chuck gave a contrite look to the Winchesters. "Guys. I'm sorry." He nodded, vaguely. "For everything." He finished, before following Becky up the stairs.

"Oh, what fresh Hell?" Marion mumbled, following Chuck.

As they walked in, a large man, wearing a brown leather jacket and a blue button-up shirt walked by them, carrying a mug of beer. "Hahaha. Hey, Dean. Lookin' good."

"Who the hell are you?" Dean asked the guy's back.

The man turned back around, allowing the group to see that he was dressed just the same as Dean, down to a reproduction of his amulet necklace. "I'm Dean, too. Duh."

Marion rubbed her hand down her face, her shoulders tensing as her eyes fell on a man with black eyes (who was definitely _not_ a demon) in a shirt that said 'Supernatural Convention'. "Uh-oh. It's Sam and Dean. I'm in trouble now." A man in a scarecrow costume walked by, shaking his plastic scythe at them. "Have fun, you guys. Aaah!"

Dean looked around as Becky giggled, excitedly. "What?" He asked, more to the universe than his companions.

"Becky." Sam began. "What is this?"

"It's awesome! A Supernatural convention. The first ever." She said, matter-of-factly. "Come on. It's starting." She pushed Sam toward a small room with a stage and several rows of chairs. Dean and Marion just followed, hands in their jacket pockets. Sam crossed his arms over his chest as the MC walked up onto the stage.

"Welcome to the first annual Supernatural convention. At 3:45 in the Magnolia room, we have the panel 'Frightened Little Boy: the Secret Life of Dean'. And at 4:30, there's 'The Homoerotic Subtext of Supernatural'." Dean's eyebrows shot up in confusion at the man's words, but Marion just shook her head with amusement. "And at 5:30, we have 'Love to Hate Her: Why Marion is Worse Than Lilith'. And of course, the big hunt starts at 7pm sharp." The audience cheered and applauded, Becky whooping. "But right now... right now, I'd like to introduce the man himself. The creator and the writer of the Supernatural books. The one, the only Carver Edlund!"

More applause broke out as Chuck slowly walked out on stage. He smiled, timidly, at the audience. The microphone squealed with feedback as he adjusted it. "Okay. Okay, good. This isn't nearly as awkward as I..." He cleared his throat. "It's uh, dry mouth." He whispered, before going to retrieve a bottle of water. "Okay. Uh. So, I guess, uh... questions?"

Every hand in the room went up, except those belonging to the Winchesters. Chuck looked shocked. "Uh... you?"

He pointed to a tall, skinny man in the second row, who jumped up happily. "Hey, Mr. Edlund! Uh, wow... big fan. I was just wondering, where'd you come up with Sam and Dean in the first place?"

Chuck's eyes darted to the back of the room where the Winchesters were standing. They each gave a look showing they were interested in how he was going to answer that question, so he swallowed and cast his eyes down. "Oh, uh, I... it just came to me." Marion rolled her eyes as the hands shot up into the air again. "Okay. Yeah. Uh, the Hook Man."

A man in a big floppy hat with a fake hook stood. "Ah, ja. Why, in every fight scene, Sam and Dean are having their gun knocked away by the bad guy? Why don't they keep it on some kind of bungee?" The man had a thick German accent.

"That'd be kinda hard to hide." Marion whispered to Sam, who had taken a thoughtful expression at the question.

"I... yeah, I-I-I really don't know." Chuck answered.

"Ja, follow-up. Why can't Sam and Dean be telling that Ruby is evil? I mean, she is clearly manipulating Sam into some kind of moral lapse. It's obvious, nein?"

Marion and Dean gave Sam matching 'It's obvious, nein?' looks, as Becky glared at the German. "Hey!" Becky broke away from Sam's side to stalk angrily down the aisle to the row the Hook Man was standing in. "If you don't like the books, don't read 'em, Fritz."

"Okay, okay. Just... okay, it's okay. So, next question. Yeah, you." Chuck tried moving on.

"Yeah, at the end of the last book... the last _real_ one, anyway, Dean goes to Hell. So, what happens next?" A fan dressed like a low-rent Sam asked.

"Oh. Well. There lies an announcement, actually. You're all gonna find out." Chuck looked up at them, then dropped his eyes to the front rows again. "Um, thanks to a wealthy Scandinavian investor, we're gonna start publishing again."

The room erupted in applause and a standing ovation, one man shouting 'Sweet Lord, yes!' as Sam and Dean tried their best to glare at Chuck over everyone's heads and Becky jumped up and down, screaming. Marion turned and walked out of the room. A Dean stopped her in the foyer. "Wow, your Marion costume is amazing. You've even got the blond roots growing in." He said, running his finger down her part. She slapped his hand away and glared at him. "And it's, like, super brave of you to come as her, you know, with all the fan hate."

"First off, don't touch me." She said, hands going to her hips. "And second, since you had the balls to talk to me, maybe you can explain exactly why you guys hate her. You don't like her because... John beat her? Am I understand that correctly?"

The Dean looked baffled at her question, like he never expected anyone to be confused about the situation. "Well, I mean, John was this hero dad until 'Pony's Tale' came out. A little hard on them, but still loving. I mean, how many people had perfect parents? No on. John wasn't perfect, but he was a good dad and..."

"You people hate this character because she was abused mentally and physically for a huge chunk of her life? Do you know how messed up that is?"

"Jeez, Lady, calm down. It's not real."

"Obviously! Obviously it's not real, because if you reacted that way to an actual abuse victim, you would surely go to Hell, which coincidently is where you guys seem to want _her_ to be."

The Dean raised an eyebrow and backed away from her as Dean and Sam exited the auditorium. "Somebody needs to buy that chick a drink."

"Victim-blaming asshole!" She shouted at the fan's back.

Dean wrapped an arm around her. "You okay?"

She shook her head. "I hate this. I hate these people. You guys... they idolize you guys, but they _hate_ me. They hate me because Dad hit me. Do you know how fucked up that is?" She whispered, wiping at her eyes.

"Yeah. I know how fucked up it is." Dean whispered, hugging her tightly. "Let's go talk to Chuck."

As they approached Chuck, sitting with Becky, her eyes lit up. "Oh, hi, Sam!"

"Excuse us." Dean said to Becky before turning to Chuck. "In case you haven't noticed, our plates are kinda full, okay?"

"Finding the Colt, hunting the Devil." Marion filled in.

"We don't have time for this crap."

"Hey, I didn't call you." Chuck defended.

"He means the books, Chuck. Why are you publishing more books?" Sam asked.

"Um... for food and shelter?"

Dean leaned over into Chuck's personal space. "Who gave you the rights to our life story?"

"An archangel. And I didn't want it!"

"Well, deal's off, okay? No more books. Our lives are not for public consumption." Sam growled, looking at Becky, who looked between Chuck and Sam.

"Uh... Becky, would you excuse us for just a second?" Chuck asked, standing.

"Uh-huh!" Becky chirped as the siblings followed the prophet away from the main convention.

"Do you guys know what I do for a living?" Chuck asked, turning to them.

"Yeah, Chuck, we know." Sam answered.

"Then, could you tell me? 'Cause I don't. All right? I'm not a good writer." He whispered. "I've got not marketable skills. I'm not some hero who can just hit the road and fight monsters, okay? Until the world ends, I gotta live, all right? And the Supernatural books are all I've got. What else do you want me to do?"

Chuck stared down the boys until a scream was heard across the hotel. On instinct, the boys ran off. "No, guys... wait!" Chuck started.

Marion shook her head at her brothers. "It's 7, right?" Chuck nodded as she leaned against the hallway wall. "They'll figure it out."

"Hey, are you-"

"I know you gotta make your living, Chuck, but... I hate your fans as much as they hate me."

"They don't know you. Most of them didn't even read past Chapter 5 of 'Pony's Tale'."

"Somehow, that makes it worse." She shook her head. "So, uh, you and Becky, huh?"

Chuck looked embarrassed, scratching the back of his neck. "She's only really interested in Sam, but I'm trying." He laughed, lightly. "I mean, I kinda struck out with you, so..."

"Well, if she asks, I'll vouch that you're a good kisser." Marion winked as she headed for the bar.

Chuck rushed to follow. "When did-"

"Future Chuck surprised me with one. Can't really complain about it."

Chuck fell away from her as she sat at the bar and ordered 2 whiskeys. "Your Marion costume is very gut. I'm glad someone had ze balls to cosplay her. She is underrated character." The German Hook Man said, sitting next to her.

Marion turned to him, smiling slightly. "She is."

"She is smart sibling. She is brave as Dean and spending 200 years in Hell and not being broken... stronger than anyone."

"239 years." She corrected, softly. She was excited to be talking to someone who didn't hate her for no reason. "And I have a theory that the abuse she went through as a teen and the ten years of service she put in under those demons, that helped prepare her for her time in Hell. Mentally, at least."

"What do you think is significance of Fergus having sex with demons wearing vessels looking like Marion?"

She started, confusion running through her. "Do what, now?"

"In first book, Fergus is having sex with a demon. She is described like Marion."

"Oh." She took a drink of her whiskey. "Guess I missed that."

"Oh, and have you heard; there is theory that the Fergus and Lilith's King of Crossroads are actually same demon?"

Marion's jaw clenched. "Yeah? Why is that a theory?"

"Well, both are having an accent. Both live in mansions. Both are crossroad demons with lots of subordinates. Both are wearing tailored suits and black silk ties. Both are talking to Lilith the same way."

"Why would one character have two different names? And why wouldn't Carver Edlund reference that somewhere, if it were true?" Marion asked, trying to debunk the theory.

"Well, maybe we're not supposed to know they are the same. Maybe there will be big reveal later. And he could have one name to deal with Marion and not seem so evil and one name for all of his business dealings."

Marion nodded, a tight smile on her face as the Hook Man spoke. He was smart. She hoped he wouldn't speak to her brothers. She dropped off of the stool and stalked off to where Chuck was signing autographs. She pushed her way behind the table and leaned down next to him. "Mr. Edlund, can I have a minute?"

"Uh, y-yeah." He stuttered, putting up a finger to let the fans know he'd be back in a minute. "What's up?"

"Did you know that, based on your descriptions of them, some of your obsessive and weirdly clever fans have come to the theory that Fergus and Crowley are the same demon?" She whispered, pointedly.

"Uh, they have?" He squeaked. "That wasn't... I mean, I didn't... I _tried_ to keep them..."

"My brothers know that Fergus has a demon name, Chuck. If they hear that theory, they're gonna know it's him and that's gonna make things harder on me."

"Well, they aren't talking to the fans much, so... maybe they won't hear the theory. I mean, I hadn't heard it."

"I swear to you, Chuck... I like you, man, but I will hurt you if this whole thing blows up in my face." She growled, before heading back to the bar. Her brothers were sitting at the bar, shot glasses in front of them. Dean was smirking at a woman dressed as a ghost. "Hey, guys. How was the hunt?" She asked, flopping down on the other side of Sam.

"Go back to Hell, useless waste of a book." A Dean cosplayer on the other side of her growled.

Marion tensed up, but didn't say anything this time, so Dean swiveled around on his stool and dropped his feet to the floor. "I am so completely done with this." He walked around between Marion and the Dean. "Marion is arguably the most badass hunter in this stupid series. She's a hard-drinking, hard-fighting _genius_ who could've made something of herself, but _chose_ to stick by her twin brother. Twin brother, by the way, who was a complete dick to her, so that makes her the most loyal person in the series, too. You and all these other junkless bastards talkin' 'bout 'She ruined John'. She didn't ruin John, the whiskey did. The Life ruined John, losing Mary ruined John, but Marion _loved_ that man. That's why she sold herself to Fergus instead of just havin' the demon take him out of commission, which he would've been more than happy to do. Keep your mouth shut about Marion."

"She's just a dumb bitch who couldn't deal. She's not better than Dean."

"She's better than all of them. Dean is a neurotic ball of self-hatred. He's never had a thought that wasn't directly influenced by John. His music, his car, his beloved leather jacket, he doesn't have a single original anything. Except his womanizing ways, even John treated women with more respect than Dean." Dean stepped closer to the cosplayer. "And worse than your _idol_ treating random women like objects, he knew that John was beating his twin and proceeded to spend 15 years ignoring it and telling her that she was imagining it. He drove her to make that deal with Fergus. Your idol is the reason his twin went to Hell, for 250 years, as a human. Which she somehow survived with minimal damage, by the way. I won't hear you talking shit about her anymore."

The cosplayer got up and walked away, seemingly uncomfortable with Dean's intensity. Dean turned to Marion with a smile and caught her eyes shining with tears. "Hey, don't cry over him. He's a dick."

"Yeah, but you weren't and that's why the tears." She said, wrapping him in a hug.

"Well, I figure I've got a bunch of years of not having your back to make up for. You're kinda winning 'Best Twin' for the thirtieth year in a row and I've gotta get my name on the board." Dean said, with a smile.

Sam chuckled. "It's weird. I didn't know we were in a chick flick."

"Shut up, Sammy." The twins echoed.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Getting rid of the ghosts of Leticia Gore and the children was made easier with the application of two cosplayers and Chuck on distraction. When the sun came up and they were heading out, Dean stopped to talk to Demian and Barnes, and Marion and Sam stopped to talk to Becky and Chuck.

"Look, Sam. I'm not gonna lie. We had undeniable chemistry. But... like a monkey on the sun, it was too hot to live. It can't go on. Chuck and I, we found each other. My yin to his proud yang. And well, the heart wants what the heart wants. I'm so, so sorry." Becky said, dramatically.

"Yeah, Sam. You know, sorry." Chuck said, as Marion bit her lip to keep in her laughter.

"Will you be all right?" Becky asked, like she was expecting Sam to fight.

Sam put on a sad face. "Honestly, I don't know. I'll just have to find a way to keep living, I guess."

"God bless you." Becky gasped.

"Okay. Oh, hey, Chuck, look, if you really wanna publish more books, I guess that's okay with us." Marion said.

"Wow. Really?"

"No, not really." Sam interjected. "We have guns and we will find you."

"Okay, okay. No more books."

"See ya around."

"Good luck." Marion whispered to Chuck, eying Becky as she and Sam started to walk away. Becky broke away from Chuck.

"Sam! Wait. One more thing. In chapter 33 of Supernatural 'Time is on my Side', there's that girl, Bela? She was British, and a cat burglar."

"From the thing with the Rabbit's Foot?" Marion asked, an eyebrow raised.

"Yeah, I remember." Sam said, in a 'why are you reminding me of my own life' tone.

"She stole the Colt from you and then she _said_ she gave it to Lilith, remember?"

"Well, you know she lied, right? She didn't really give it to Lilith." 

Sam looked confused, turning to Chuck. "Wait, what?"

"Didn't you read the book?" Becky asked, excitedly. "There was this one scene where Bela gives the Colt to a demon named Crowley. Lilith's right hand man, and I think her lover, too." 

Marion couldn't help the glare that poured out of her eyes toward Chuck. "Crowley. Didn't it occur to you to tell us this before?"

"I'm sorry. I didn't remember." Chuck said, apologetically. "I'm not as much of a fan as she is."

"Becky, tell us everything." Sam demanded, which caused Becky to giggle.

"Okay! Crowley is King of the Crossroads. Lilith is far too busy to deal with the day-to-day sales of crossroads deals, so Crowley deals with the paperwork. Because he's in charge of the deals, Bela went to him to try to get out of her contract, so the Colt went to him. Of course, as soon as he had his hands on the Colt, he changed the deal."

"Because he didn't have authorization to offer Bela an out, in the first place." Marion mumbled.

"You know, I thought the same thing!" Becky exclaimed.

"Books didn't happen to say where Crowley put the Colt, did they?"

"His mansion. But I don't know where that would be." Becky said, with a shrug.

"Well, this is a lot more than we had yesterday. Thanks, Becky." Sam said, before they turned to walk back to the car.

Marion walked slower than Sam, her mind reeling from the upcoming confrontation with Crowley and the revelation of what Mohawk meant about 'I could've gotten it for him'. Because, of course Crowley has the damn Colt, the one thing that might put down an archangel. Of course, she has to go to the mansion where Azazel took her to Hell and of course she has to treat him as she said she would. Like any other demon. She made it to the car as Sam and Dean were getting in.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"I know where he is." Marion said into her phone. They'd stopped at a truck stop to gas up and grab snacks and Marion had excused herself to the bathroom. "My brothers can't know that he's Fergus, can't know that I've been there before, so I can't tell them where to go."

"Are you going to be able to kill him for the Colt?" Cas asked.

"Of course. I have to." She said, looking out the bathroom door to see Sam and Dean getting back into the Impala. "I'm gonna text you the address and you can report it to Dean like it's your own find, okay?"

"All right, Marion. I will see you soon."

Marion pushed the phone into her pocket and headed back to the Impala. "So, this Crowley..." Dean started, half of a gas station hot dog in his mouth. "...he's a crossroad douche, too. He friends with _Fergus_ , by any chance?"

Marion shook her head. "Crowley hates Fergus, thinks he weak and... sentimental. That's what he gets for marking a human."

"So, you've _met_ this Crowley guy?" Sam asked, turning around in the seat.

Marion nodded. The closer she could stay to the truth, the better. "I used to work for Lilith. Of course, I met her second."

"And what's he like? What are we walkin' into?"

Marion shrugged. "He's a demon. What do you want? He's a scheming, sociopathic, opportunistic jackass who is pretty much only out for himself. I reiterate, he's a demon."

"You don't happen to know where his base is?" Dean asked, polishing off the hot dog. Marion just shook her head. "Well, I called Cas in. He's looking for Crowley. It's just a matter of time. Figured we could call the Harvelles in to help us out once we get a bead on the guy."

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Sneaking into the building was easy, but hiding that she'd been there before was the hard part. As Jo played electrician, Marion flipped a rug, quickly painting a devil's trap on the bottom of it and flipping it back over as music played. The lights cut out with the music and Marion's heart raced with anxiety as she heard the soft thuds of Crowley leaving his library. He was bouncing as he left the room.

"It's Crowley, right?" Sam asked, as soon as the demon was visible. Marion couldn't speak, her shotgun aimed at the demon's chest and her heart pounding in her own.

"So. Nancy Drew and the Hardy Boys finally found me." Crowley started. "Took you long enough." He started to move forward, stopping and looking down at the rug. He bent down and flipped it to reveal the paint. "Do you have any idea how much this rug cost?"

A demon suddenly grabbed each of them from behind and pulled them backward to get them off-balance as Crowley pulled out the Colt and looked at it with wonder. "This is it, right? This is what it's all about." He lifted the gun and pointed it at Dean. He moved his aim a little, then pulled the trigger, taking out each demon quickly. "We need to talk. Privately." He said, leading them toward an office with an ornate plaque on the door.

"What the hell is this?" Dean asked.

"Do you know how deep I could have buried this thing?" Crowley asked, waving his hand to slam the door shut. "There's no reason you or anyone should know this even still exists, except that I told you."

Marion didn't look at him. She looked around the office, the same office where she'd seen Azazel and recognized him. Sam spoke her thoughts, though. " _You_ told us?"

Crowley smirked. "Rumors, innuendo. Sent out on the grapevine."

"Why? Why tell us anything?" Sam asked.

Crowley aimed the revolver at Dean's face again. "I want you to take this thing to Lucifer and empty it into his face."

Marion blanched. "Why in the world would you want Lucifer dead?" She finally spoke in her surprise and immediately regretted it, because Crowley's hazel eyes jumped to hers, demanding eye contact, which she only gave for a few seconds before she looked away.

"It's called..." Crowley set the Colt on the desk. "Survival. But I forgot... you three, at best, are functional morons."

"Yeah, you're functioning... morons." Dean attempted to clap back.

"Lucifer isn't a demon, remember? He's an angel. An angel famous for his hatred of humankind. To him, you're just... filthy bags of pus." He reached for a rocks glass filled with Craig and took a drink. "If that's the way he feels about _you_ , what can he think about _us_?"

"But he created you." Sam attempted.

"To him, we're just servants. Cannon fodder. If Lucifer manages to exterminate humankind, we're next." He sat on the edge of the desk. "So, help me, huh? Let's all go back to simpler, _better_ times, back to when we could all follow our natures. I'm in sales, dammit! So, what do you say if I give you this thing and you go kill the Devil?" He put down the glass and picked up the Colt, wiggling the butt of the gun at Sam, who hesitantly took it.

"Okay." Sam said.

"Great." Crowley said, with a bright smile.

"You wouldn't happen to know where the Devil _is_ , by chance, would you?" Sam asked.

"Thursday." Crowley turned around to grab his glass again. "Birdies tell me he has an appointment in Carthage, Missouri."

Sam glanced at the twins, then nodded. "Great. Thanks." Sam said, pulling the gun up to rest the barrel against Crowley's forehead and pulling the trigger. The gun clicked uselessly and Crowley looked up at Sam, coolly.

"Oh, yeah, right. You'll probably need some more ammunition." He said, moving around the desk to pull one of the drawers open.

The brothers exchanged a 'What the fuck' look, before Dean took a step closer to the desk. "Oh, uh, excuse me for asking, but aren't you kind of signing your own death warrant? I mean, what happens to _you_ if we go up against the Devil and lose?"

"Number one, he's going to wipe us all out, anyway. Two, after you leave here, I go on an extended vacation to all points nowhere and three, how about you don't miss, okay! Morons!" Crowley shouted, tossing a pouch at Dean, before disappearing and reappearing next to Marion. A knife was snuggly against her ribcage. "Now, you boys leave with the gun. As soon as you're back at that penis extension you call a car, I'll release the fairer Winchester."

"No." Dean growled.

Marion felt no malice in Crowley's stance, regardless of the knife, so she waved at her brothers. "Dean, Sam, go. I've got this."

"Are you kidding me?" Sam asked.

"Get the hell out of here. I'll be right behind. Walk. Now!"

"If he kills you..." Dean started, walking towards the door.

"You think I'm gonna let some demonic salesman off me? Have faith, D. Go."

Sam and Dean rushed out, trying to get to the Impala as fast as possible. Marion finally allowed herself to look at Crowley, again, as he pulled away the knife. "So..." She leaned against the back of a chair and looked at him. He looked good. "How long did it take you to get out of that Devil's Trap?"

Crowley smiled, the glass of Craig appearing in his hand. "Two weeks. Deer got too close. I was able to call for help."

"You know, if you'd told me that Lilith was the last Seal, I could've stopped it. I could've outed Ruby as a fraud, Lucifer would still be locked up."

"And Lilith would still be alive and in charge. This way is better. Your brothers take out Lucifer and Hell is mine, Pony. The Princes, I know them, they won't want the crown. King of the Crossroads will get promoted to King of Hell."

Marion chuckled. His plan was always to be king. "You still hoping for a Winchester as a queen?"

"No. I got over that months ago. I am taking applications for my harem, though, if you're interested." He said, with a smirk. He reached over and grabbed her hand, his smirk changing to a soft smile. "I didn't lie. I didn't pick you because of what you can do, Marion. I picked you because of who you are. Can we stop pretending like we hate each other now? I've missed you. And I'm giving up everything I have here so that you and your brothers can take the Colt. I'd like to have someone I can call while I'm in hiding."

He chuckled. "Someone to send dirty pictures to when I'm bored."

Marion looked down at her phone as Dean called her. "Assuming I don't die in Carthage. You can call me, Crowley."

"Don't call me that, Pony. 'Fergus', please." He said, putting a hand on each side of her head and pulling her into a deep kiss. His tongue pushed into her mouth and she moaned at the taste of his scotch and the sulfur that was so familiar to her.

She pulled away from him as her phone went off again. "If the Devil doesn't kill me, we will have to talk about this, Fergus. About us. About... all the things that have happened since I left you in that Devil's Trap. Right now, I gotta go... and so do you." She said, before answering her phone and rushing out of the office. "Yeah, D. I'm on my way out. No, he didn't hurt me. I told you, I had it."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Crowley's back! Yay!


	27. Broken

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> There's non-con here. It's not really bad, but it's definitely emotionally damaging.

Castiel was waiting at Bobby's when they pulled into the salvage yard. Marion looked down as she passed him with her duffel bag. "Hey, Bobby!"

"'bout time you showed up. Ellen and Jo have been waiting around for hours." Bobby grumbled, rolling up to her. 

"Sorry. Dean had to stop at BigGerson's for pie." Marion said, heading up the stairs where he couldn't follow to ask her more questions. As she dropped her bag in Bobby's bedroom and sat on his bed, Cas appeared in front of her. He just looked down at her, his eyes searching her. She hoped he'd stay out of her mind, but she knew that wasn't a guarantee. "Yeah, Cas?"

"You're upset." He said, simply.

"I'm... confused, is all." She said, looking at her feet.

"Confused by what? What happened with Crowley?"

"He... didn't tell my brothers that he knew me. He didn't do anything... except _help_. He gave us the Colt. He just handed it over. He plans to become King of Hell after we kill Lucifer." 

"All right. He is helping so that he can get something out of it. That is Crowley's Modus Operandi, is it not?"

Marion rubbed her hand down her face. "I... it just... seeing him, it just... there's so many feelings I thought I'd addressed and gotten rid of." 

"Do you love him?" The words came out stilted and cold.

Marion scoffed. "I... I don't _think_  I do. I don't... I don't know. I..." She looked at her feet again. "I hated him until I walked into that office, again. But, then I saw his plan. I saw that look in his eyes when he had me alone. I... I let him kiss me. I don't know what I feel, Cas. I wanted him for so long and... I had such an _amazing_ time with you, and I can honestly say that I care more about you than I have ever cared for anyone except my family but... you don't really have time for me and Crowley just gave up everything he had so that we could go against Lucifer. Like I said, I'm confused."

Castiel's eye twitched as he looked down at her. "You're right. Whatever the outcome of tomorrow's mission, I will continue my search for God, if I can. I only had time for you in Gabriel's trap because I had nowhere else to go." His gaze jumped to the ceiling. "If you trust the demon... if you want him... I have no right to stand in the way."

"If I knew what I wanted, I wouldn't be confused, Cas!" She stood, grabbing his head and forcing him to look at her. "I feel grace and peace and happiness when I am with you. It's, honestly, the closest I've ever gotten to being in love, but what we've shared... that's it. You can crave my silence, you can crave my body, but you can't love me. Fergus can't, either. He's a demon and there is no capacity for love in him. So, either way, I'm stuck in the same place I've been in since I was a child... in love with a creature who can't possibly reciprocate."

"I _can_... I just... don't know how."

"And don't have the time to be taught. Cas, you're on a mission and I get that. I would never wanna keep you from that. Finding God, even if it's not _the_  answer... I've got other questions. Everything that we're doing, it's all more important than what's going on in my heart. So..."

"You'll come to a decision after?" The angel asked, quietly.

"If there _is_  an after." She responded. "But... never doubt, Castiel, that I care about you. If I were going to love someone, it'd be easiest to love you." She pulled his lips to meet hers, then turned away, wiping at her eyes as she shed her jacket and threw it on Bobby's bed. When she turned back, he was gone. She took a deep breath and walked out of the room. Dean was standing outside the door.

"Why do you get Bobby's room?" He asked, but it wasn't angry, just curious.

"Come on, D. It's Bobby's house. Ask the man who he'd rather have sleeping in his bed." She said, forcing a smile and patting her brother's shoulder as she passed him and headed down the stairs. When she got to the bottom, she was face to face with Ellen. "Hi. It's, uh, nice to meet you, Ellen. You know, without a shotgun in my face."

"Yeah, you know, Bobby ain't ever told me how you ended up on the Hell side of that gate." The older woman said, following Marion as she walked into the kitchen.

"Same as everyone on the other side of that gate." Marion said, pulling the fridge open to grab several beers. "I made a bad decision that fucked me over."

"What bad decision was that?"

Marion sighed, turning to look straight into Ellen's face. "Look, you knew my Dad, so I don't wanna ruin your perception of him. I made a deal, ended up in Hell, but I got out and that's all that matters."

Ellen nodded, knowingly. "Yer the one John used to beat, huh?"

Marion almost dropped the beers in her hand. "What? How did you-"

Ellen pulled the two extra beers out of Marion's hand and set them on the counter. "John came into the Roadhouse once. Got drunk, got weepy like some men do, started cryin' 'bout all his regrets and failin's as a father. When he got real gone, he tol' me that he put one of his twins in a cast. Broke their arm, fer no reason other than he was drunk an' frustrated and they were there. When I met Dean, I thought he was the one, but... I see now. Sold yer soul fer revenge?"

"No." Marion sighed. "No. I sold my life for... the demon made it where Dad literally couldn't see me unless he was sober. Saved me from those... drunken issues. Still, signed a contract with a demon, which they used to take me to Hell. That's how I ended up on the other side of the Gate."

"Well, yer daddy really regretted what he did to ya. He just didn't know exactly how to stop."

"I know. I've always known that. Just didn't know how to tell him." She responded, blinking away her tears.

"Well. It's nice to meet ya, Marion."

Marion just nodded and grabbed the beers before walking away toward the study, where her brothers were sitting. She handed each of them a bottle and sat down next to Sam. "So... what're we thinking, boys?"

"It's gotta be a trap, right?" Sam said, leaning over Bobby's desk.

Dean chuckled, looking down at the newspaper in his hands. "Sam Winchester having trust issues with a demon. Well, better late than never."

"Yeah, and thank you again for your continued support." Sam said, with a smirk. 

"You're welcome." Dean responded, clinking his beer bottle against Sam's and taking a drink. "You know, trap or no trap..." Dean set the map on the desk and leaned forward. "We got a snowball's chance, we gotta take it, right?" 

"Yeah, I suppose."

Dean grabbed several papers. "Besides, I'm not sure it _is_  a trap. Check it out. I mean, Carthage is lit up like a Christmas tree with Revelation omens. And look at this. There's been six missing persons reported, in town, since Sunday. I think the Devil's there."

"Okay." Sam said.

Dean picked up his beer, then thought better of it, setting it back down. "Look, when you think about it... you can't come with, Sam." 

Sam rolled his eyes. "Dean."

"Look, Mare and I go against Satan and screw the pooch, okay. We've lost a couple game pieces, that we can take. But if _you're_ there, then we are handing the Devil's vessel right over to him. That's not smart." 

"Marion's a vessel, too, man! And since when have we ever done anything smart?"

Dean threw a quick look at Marion. "I'm not worried about her. There's nothing Lucifer can do to her that would make her say 'yes'. I'm serious, Sam."

"So am I. Haven't we learned a damn thing? If we're gonna do this, we're gonna do it _together_."

The brothers stared across the desk at each other for a few moments, until Dean sighed and grabbed his beer. "Okay. But it's a stupid friggin' idea." Dean's attention was suddenly caught by something in the kitchen.

Sam and Marion followed his gaze to Jo Harvelle and her tight jeans. "Boy, talk about stupid ideas."

"Good god." Dean bit the inside of his lip and stood. "True, that." He said, heading for the kitchen.

Marion and Sam drank their beers and looked down at the desktop. "You nervous?" Sam whispered.

"I've been face-to-face with the Devil twice, not counting the pillar of grace that shot out of the Cage. I cried like a bitch both times. I'm kinda scared that I might not be able to even _do_  anything in this fight. Lucifer likes when I cry, though, so I might be a good distraction." 

"And you're not nervous about being his vessel, being around him?"

"I'm not saying 'yes', Sammy, and neither are you, right?"

Sam smiled as Bobby rolled into the room with a camera and a tripod. "Right." 

"Everybody, get in here! It's time for the lineup. Usual suspects, in the corner." Bobby shouted.

Sam and Marion headed for the corner and Ellen joined them. "Oh, come on, Bobby. Nobody wants their picture taken."

"Hear, hear." Sam agreed.

"Shut up. You're drinkin' _my_  beer." Marion wasn't sure where to stand as Castiel stood on the end and her brothers wrapped their arms around each other, Cas and the Harvelles. As Bobby rolled backward into the group, she decided to kneel down in front of Ellen, leaning her arm against Bobby's wheelchair. "Anyway, I'm gonna need somethin' to remember your sorry asses by."

"Ha! Always good to have an optimist around." Ellen commented.

"Bobby's right. Tomorrow we hunt the Devil. This is our last night on Earth." The mood in the room darkened as Castiel's words hit everyone and the flash went off. 

***************

Marion followed Castiel once they were in Carthage. She couldn't exactly _see_  the Reapers like he could, they were just blobs of dark-suited energy, but they were everywhere. Cas seemed to not notice she was even following him, as he weaved through the Reapers, and when he came to a building that interested him, he looked up at a second-story window, then suddenly appeared inside the building, leaving her out on the street. She let out an exasperated sigh, then rushed for the door. She ran down a hallway, entered a room and was suddenly face-to-face with Lucifer. She was surprised when she was able to hold her gaze on his blue eyes, no tears forming in her own.

"Marion, you... smell different and you aren't crying." He reached out and grabbed her by her neck, maneuvering her effortlessly into a chair. A demon approached and cuffed her to the heavy metal chair. Lucifer smirked as he released her and stepped back. "Ah! You've been joined, intimately, with angelic grace. Your pet angel's. Wow! How was that?"

She glared up at him. "Do you really expect me to answer that with anything besides sarcasm?"

"You're still acting like you have some sort of leg to stand on." Lucifer chuckled. "Come on. Haven't you figured out how this is going to go down? Sam says 'yes'... not today, but soon. In Detroit. Just like you saw in the future, and you or Dean are gonna say 'yes' to Michael. It has to happen. It's _going_  to happen."

"No. We all agreed. We wouldn't let each other down, not like that."

"That's adorable, but irrelevant. It's been coming for millions of years." Lucifer gave a shrug, which earned him a sneer from Marion.

"Well, I guess we'll have to see which burns out first; _that_  vessel, or _our_ resolve." 

He turned to the demon beside him. "Go ahead and take her to the room where Castiel is. And put some tape on her mouth." 

"Are you sure? I could easily-"

"If Sam and Dean continue to resist, I'm going to need Plan B, Meg. Don't kill her." Lucifer reminded in a condescending tone.

"Yes, sir." Meg said, putting a piece of duct tape over Marion's mouth before grabbing the back of the chair and pulling it across the floor into a room where Castiel stood in the middle of a circle of Holy Fire. Lucifer followed behind. Meg dropped the chair just out of Castiel's sight.

Castiel gave a confused look, then turned to Lucifer. "Lucifer."

"So, I take it you're here with the Winchesters." Lucifer said, stepping out of the shadows as Meg left the room.

"I came alone." Cas lied.

"Loyalty." Lucifer chuckled, lightly. "Such a nice quality to see in this day and age. 'Castiel', right?" Cas nodded, awed. "Castiel, I'm told you came here in an automobile."

"Yes." 

"What was _that_ like?"

"Um. Slow. Confining." Cas answered.

"What a peculiar thing you are."

"What's wrong with your vessel?"

Marion rolled her eyes at Cas' words. _*His vessel can't hold him! It's not strong enough.*_

"Yes, um... Nick is wearing a bit thin, I'm afraid. He can't contain me forever, so..."

"You-" Cas growled. "You are not taking Sam Winchester. I won't let you." 

"Castiel, I don't understand why you're fighting _me_ , of all the angels."

"You really have to ask?"

" _I_ rebelled. I was cast out. _You_ rebelled. _You_ were cast out. Almost all of Heaven wants to see me dead, and if they succeed, guess what? You're their new public enemy number one. We're on the same side, like it or not. So, why not just serve your own best interests? Which, in this case, just happen to be mine?"

"I'll die first." 

There was a moment of silence. "I suppose you will." 

Marion watched as Lucifer's grace disappeared, as he walked away, then she started to lick at the tape over her lips until she could open her mouth enough to talk. "Cas!"

"Marion? What are you-?"

"I'm cuffed to a chair. I can't reach my picks, so I'm stuck. Are you-"

"Holy fire. Are you all right?"

"He won't hurt me. I'm assuming he won't hurt Sam, either, but the Harvelles and Dean..." 

Lucifer was suddenly kneeling in front of her. "I won't _kill_  you, Marion, but there are things worse than death." He reached up and ripped the tape away from her face. 

Marion glared at him. "I survived Hell. You don't-"

"It's adorable that you think _that_ was Hell. I could put you into a world of pain that you never imagined." 

She chuckled, looking down at him. "I don't have to imagine pain. Oh, Luci, you don't even know the things I have survived."

"I've survived worse, little monkey."

"Leave her alone!" Castiel called.

"I'm fine, Cas. I can take anything this dickbag-"

"I don't need to hurt you to put you in pain. You've had grace within you. Touching all your most sensitive places. Mine can trace that path like a map." Marion shook her head, almost violently, as Lucifer's grace seeped from his hands into her thighs, a tingling coldness spreading across her lower body and upward. She was determined not to feel anything, but her body reacted. She bit back a moan, but couldn't hold the quivering sigh. 

Castiel growled on the other side of the room, still unable to see her, unable to see what Lucifer was doing, but being able to hear Lucifer's words and her little sounds that he knew so well. The sounds he replayed in his head when he was alone and unbusy. "Lucifer, do not touch her!"

"I'm not _touching_  her, brother. I don't need to." Lucifer took two long steps backward, into Castiel's vision, but his grace continued to flow from him. "See, Meg told me about her, about her time in Hell. Alistair forced her. He cut her to pieces and forced all sorts of terrible things inside of her, including himself. It took her hundreds of years to get over it. Can you imagine, brother?"

A moan tore from her throat as the cold energy found its focus on her mound. "She will absolutely _hate_  liking this." 

"Leave her alone." Castiel demanded, a possessiveness gripping at him as she began panting. "This is unfair. She can't control how she-"

"And that's the beauty of it. She's being forced, she has no control over whether she likes it, but she's still gonna be destroyed by it when it's over. This is how you do torture, in case you were wondering. No need to get my hands dirty, no need to even touch her."

Marion closed her eyes, tears flowing down her cheeks as her inner walls started to clench at nothing. "Fuck." She whimpered. 

"Marion, this isn't your fault. This isn't... You will be all right." Castiel tried to comfort from his spot in the ring of fire, but he just sounded distressed.

Lucifer pointed up, the feeling of his grace intensifying. "Sure about that?"

"Ah!" She shifted against the chair, desperate to get away from the feeling. "It's too much!" She cried. He cut his hand through the air and the feeling stopped. She let out a sigh of relief, which caught in her throat as the tingle started to probe at the inside of her. "No!"

Lucifer gave a small smile to Castiel as he pointed up again. Marion started to kick her legs as best she could as an orgasm crashed over her, quickly and forcefully. He pointed down, slightly, his grace continuing his assault on her as he turned to focus on Castiel. "This was an interesting way to kill time. I imagine you enjoyed this when you were with her?"

"I..." Castiel couldn't answer, focusing on the little whimpering noises she was giving off. 

Meg walked up, proudly. "I got the Winchesters pinned down. For now, at least. What should I do with them?"

"Leave them alone."

"I'm-I'm sorry, but are you sure? Shouldn't we-"

"Trust me, child. Everything happens for a reason." Lucifer turned to Cas. "Well, Castiel, you have some time. Time to change your mind. It might be the very best thing for you _and_  your lover. Might be the only way the two of you survive this." He chuckled. "Should say _our_  lover, shouldn't I?"

Meg gave a distressed glance to Marion, sighing in relief to see the woman was completely clothed, then smirked happily as Lucifer disappeared. 

"You seem pleased." Castiel said to Meg.

"We're gonna win. Can you feel it? You cloud-hopping pansies lost the whole damn universe. Lucifer's gonna take over Heaven. We're going to Heaven, Clarence." Meg's excitement was palpable.

"Strange. Because I heard a different theory from a demon named Crowley."

"You don't know Crowley."

Castiel thought, for a minute, that Marion might respond instead, but all he heard were sniffles from her, so he continued. "He believes Lucifer is just using demons to achieve an end and that, once he does, he'll destroy you all."

"You're wrong." She said, indignantly. "Lucifer is the father of our race. Our creator. _Your_ God may be a deadbeat, but _mine_? Mine walks the Earth."

There was a sound of creaking metal and Meg made a distressed sound as she got knocked into the ring of fire. Castiel pressed his hand to her forehead, trying to smite her, but nothing happened. She laughed. "You can't gank demons, can you? You're cut off from the home office and you ain't got the juice. So, what _can_ you do, you impotent sap?" She taunted. 

"I can do this." Castiel threw her on the fire and walked across her back as she screamed. He rushed for the dark corner Marion was in, easily breaking her cuffs. He put his hands on her biceps, trying to comfort her, but she flinched away. 

"Don't. Don't touch me. Just go save my brothers from the Devil. I'll meet you at the front of the movie theater." She wasn't able to meet his eyes, nor was she able to look at his grace.

"Marion." He tried, but she just shook her head and brushed past him, running for the door.

She had no intention of sticking around at the theater. She hotwired the first car that wasn't locked and sped away from Carthage at top speed. She couldn't think about whether the Harvelles, her brothers and Cas made it out. She couldn't think about what Lucifer was doing in Carthage. She could only think about how right Lucifer had been and how he'd been able to break her without touching her. When she finally calmed down enough to look around the car, she found a pack of cigarettes and a lighter in the center console. She didn't think twice about sticking one between her lips and lighting it. "Thank you, poor dead bastard whose car I stole." She said to herself as she opened the window to blow the smoke outside the car.

Her phone started ringing 20 minutes later, as she was smoking her third cigarette. Castiel was the first to call, then Dean, then Castiel again four more times.  Dean left a message on his second call. "Hey, Pony. I don't know what happened, Cas won't tell me, but Lucifer's still out there. The Colt didn't work. Sam and I made it out, but Jo and Ellen didn't and... I need to know that you are okay. I need to know that Lucifer doesn't have you. Please, answer the damn phone. You _know_ Cas can't find you with the marks on your ribs. Please. Call me back."

She sighed and pulled up her texting app. _**Sorry, D. Would've left a note, but I wasn't sure how you'd get it. Mercury.**_

_**Oh come on mare. u cant just dip out in the middle of the fucking apocalypse** _

_**I can't be around right now, Dean.** _

_**what the fuck happened**_  Marion didn't answer. She couldn't. There was no way that he'd understand. _**Fine. what the fuck ever. You need to text me every day so i know youre still alive.**_

_**Promise.** _

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Marion sat on a barstool. It was her twelfth bar in as many cities, in as many nights. She always made sure to text Dean before she started drinking so she could put her phone in her bag and ignore its existence until the morning, when she would leave the motel she'd pulled into before starting her nightly bender.

"You haven't been answering yer phone. Had to track you with witchcraft. "

She closed her eyes and let out an uneven breath. She was hoping that Crowley wouldn't be on the stool next to her when she opened her eyes, but there he was. "There's-uh reason for tha. Kinda wan be 'lone." She slurred.

Crowley's eyebrow shot up. "What are you drinkin' so heavy for?"

"Go 'way." She demanded, draining the rest of her whiskey. It was basically rotgut, the absolute cheapest liquor in the bar. She wasn't drinking for the taste, after all. 

"I can't, in good conscience, leave you in this bar that drunk. I can _see_ the sin rolling off of some of these-"

"Shut up!" She exclaimed. "You can see it because you're a fuckin' demon. A horrible, terrible- You don't _have_ a conscience." 

"Whoa! Someone's a mean drunk. What'd I do to deserve-" Crowley put his hand on her shoulder, but she pushed him away from her.

"I went to Hell because of you!" Crowley smiled slightly when the bartender stared at her. "I was tortured. I was-" She broke down, tears rolling unhindered from her eyes as sobs shook her body. She dropped her head to the bar with a thud that was heard throughout the bar. 

Crowley threw a $100 bill on the bar and wrapped his arm around Marion's waist, pulling her to her feet and walking out with her. "Which motel, Marion?" He asked, quietly but firmly enough that she had no choice in understanding.

"Econ-me." She slurred, her head hanging.

Crowley reached into her jacket pocket and pulled out a room key, then the car keys. He easily pushed her into the passenger seat of her car and appeared in the driver's seat. Once he got to the motel and into the room, he dropped her on the bed and snapped his fingers. A bottle of water appeared in one hand and a sandwich appeared in the other. "Hey. Sit up. You need to eat something." 

"Don't wanna."

"Oh, don't be a child, Marion. You need to eat." She whined as she sat up and grabbed the sandwich, her fingertips ripping through the bread as she grasped it too hard. She opened her mouth and took as big a bite as she could, chewing with her mouth open on purpose to annoy him. "Incredibly mature. Are you certain you spent 250 years in Hell, because you're acting like a 5 year old."

"239. I don' nee you to 'zaggerate my time." She growled at him after she swallowed.

"What is wrong wif you? What happened in Carthage?" Marion shook her head, taking another bite of the sandwich. Crowley sat next to her on the bed. "What did that overgrown dove do to you?" 

She swallowed and threw herself backwards, staring at the ceiling, a deep frown on her face. "Do... do yew know... wha Alistair did ta me?" He put his hand on hers, but she pulled it away. "Don' touch me! Jus' ansher the queshion."

"I can imagine." Crowley answered, pulling his coat and suit jacket off and throwing them on the table. "I've seen his handiwork. I know what-"

"He raped me." She closed her eyes so that she wouldn't be tempted to look at him. "The pain, the starvation, the... kerf marks on my bones... none of that fucked me up nearly as badly as the rapes. I wo- I wouldn't... I couldn't even... I was a virgin, you know. 'fore you got me sen' ta Hell, I was holdin' hope fer... an' when I got back, I couldn't... no one could... you kissed me an' that was 'kay, didn' feel like... but then I hated you and trapped you." Crowley was, somehow, following her drunken slurring. He sat next to her, but didn't touch her. "I 'as with Castiel. He was firs' one I didn't feel... fucked up with. It was good, you know, it felt good an' right and his grace fel' divine and then, Lose-iv... Lucifer used _his_ grace to- Ruined grace. Ruined me." 

"Marion... I'm sorry. I... I didn't... Bloody Lucifer... and Alistair." Crowley didn't know what to say. He ran his hand down his face and looked down at her. Her face was red, her eyes puffy, her hair looked like it hadn't been washed in a week. She looked destroyed. "I didn't know you were... I thought Alistair might have forced himself on you, but I didn't think you were..."

He took a deep breath, rage filling his chest at the thought that she'd been pure when Azazel grabbed her, that he'd let the opportunity to be the first to touch her slip through his fingers. He had assumed she'd done as her twin did, flirting and fucking her way through the dive bars and roadhouses across America. He shook his head at himself. He knew her better than that, knew that she wasn't that type of woman. Where had he gotten the idea that she was promiscuous?

A jealousy gripped him once he'd cycled through the information she'd garbled out at him. "You had sex with... the angel?" He managed to ask it without sounding angry.

"He's good to me. He wants to love me, but he can't. I'm so broken." She said, pulling her legs onto the bed and curling up on her side. 

Crowley wanted to argue with her, but he couldn't. She was broken, but maybe he could help fix her. "Pony, you need to drink some water."

"No."

"Marion..." 

"No. I'm going to sleep. You go 'way."

"I'm not going anywhere. If you want to sleep, I'll stick around. If you succumbed to alcohol poisoning, it'd be a travesty."

"No, it wouldn't. No travedy if I die. Only thing is... who'd keep Sam an' D. 'live if I was gone?"

"Don't say that."

"Go away. I don't want... I don't want anybody. I don't-"

Crowley rolled his eyes. "Shut up, Marion. Go the fuck to sleep. I'm not going anywhere." He said, forcefully. 

"I hate you." She whispered, as tears started rolling down her face and into her hair.

"Well, if you still feel that way in the morning, I'll leave, but tonight I'm here for you, pet." The room was silent afterward, except the sound of her sniffling breaths, until her breathing shifted to a pattern of deep inhalation and exhalation. Crowley turned, pulling her brunette locks out of her face and looking down at her. He was filled with the urge to kill someone. His choice victim would have been Lucifer, but he wasn't dumb enough to go after him himself. Even the Winchesters, armed with the bloody Colt, couldn't put down Lucifer. "I'll be back, pet." He whispered, before disappearing.

He appeared outside the bar and walked in. It was getting close to last call and there were only a handful of patrons left in the bar. Crowley zeroed in on one in the back and walked over to him, sitting down across from him. "How about we get out of here, I'll show you the time of your life?" The man raised an eyebrow at him. "Come on. You've been hiding in your closet long enough. I know where your desires lie. Let me show you what it feels like to have 11 inches stuffed up your arse."

The man in front of him drained his drink and stood. "I'll follow you." As soon as they were out in the parking lot, the other man tried to grab him. "Fuckin' faggot!" 

Crowley appeared behind the man, grabbing him by his hair and bashing his face into the side of the brick wall of the bar. "I was hoping you were as big a douchebag as you looked. Not that I needed an excuse to kill you, I just like to have one." He continued bashing until the man's brain matter started to show on the brick and then he dropped the man's body. He looked down at his bloody suit and snapped his fingers. When he arrived back in Marion's motel room, his suit was pristine. He sighed and sat down on the bed next to her. "You'll be all right, love. I'll make sure of it." He whispered.


	28. Burn it Down

Marion sat up, a flask in her hand which seemed to come from under the pillow, at 7 am like clockwork. She ignored the demon leaning against the sideboard as she twisted the top off and took a drink of the dog that bit her, before stumbling to the restroom and kicking the door closed. She still didn't acknowledge him as she walked out, tucking the flask into her bra and grabbing her phone from her discarded bag. She sent another text to her twin which read just the same as the others. _**Alive**_. then she started packing. "Where are my car keys?" She spat, not looking at him.

"You're still drunk. You aren't driving. You could hurt yourself."

"Never stopped me before."

"Well, I'm stopping you."

"Didn't you say that if I still hated you in the morning, you'd leave?" She still hadn't looked at him.

"I lied. Sue me."

"How about I just exorcise you? Send you back to Hell, where they'll give you the proper traitor treatment."

"You know I'd _never_ let you finish that exorcism, Pony. Now, why don't we pretend like we're both centuries-old adults and talk to each other?"

"I talked to you last night."

"You slurred at me last night. You snapped at me. There wasn't much discourse." 

Her eyes finally jumped up to his. "What do you want from me, Crowley? What do you want me to say?!"

"Anything, pet." He said the words with emotion she'd only heard when he was begging her to stay. "Anything to prove that Lucifer hasn't already won."

She tried to form the words, "I'm fine." as they were the natural response, but she couldn't vocalize them. She covered her face with both hands and sat on the edge of the bed. "I don't know how to get better. I don't know how to fix me."

Crowley sighed, happy she'd finally let go. He reached forward and plucked the flask from her shirt. "First things. _This_ is not helping. Alcohol's a depressant."

"I don't need the D.A.R.E. speech, Crowley. I was trying to numb myself." She wanted it to sound angry, but all her vocal chords could manage was sounding tired.

"Why not talk to somebody, Pony? I know your brothers are treatin' you much better now. Why didn't you tell them?"

"I can't let them see me like this!" 

"Like what? Hurting?"

"Weak!" She stood. "Through my whole life, I've... Everything my dad did to me, I took it. I covered it for him. I was strong. I went to Hell and didn't let it change me. I can't go to them this fucked up over something... he didn't even _touch_ me!" 

Crowley pulled her into his arms and she began to cry. "You don't have to be strong with me." He whispered, as her tears started to sting through his shirt. He let her fall apart on him for a few minutes before pushing her head, gently. "You need to drink some water, pet. You're extraordinarily dehydrated."

"How do you know?"

"Because your tears are givin' me a rash and that's never happened in all of demon history." He handed her a bottle of spring water, which she drained easily. "Now, besides two bites of a sandwich last night, when's the last time you ate?" He asked, pushing her hair out of her face.

She looked down. "Do pretzels count? Bar nuts?" 

"Not at all." He shook his head. "I'll get you some breakfast. Why don't you go take a shower? You smell like the inside of a dive bar ashtray." He said it with a smile, so she just nodded, heading into the bathroom.

When she exited the bathroom, Crowley had set a plate of pancakes and a separate plate of bacon on the table. There was a bottle of orange juice and a carton of milk. "Thanks." She sat at the table and picked up a piece of bacon. "What am I supposed to do?" She asked, thoughtfully.

"You're supposed to eat." He answered, sitting down across from her. "And you're supposed to talk to me. Tell me about Castiel. How did that come to be?" He managed to keep his jealousy in check as he asked.

She took a deep breath. "Slowly. It happened slowly. We kinda hated each other when he first showed up. He called me a whore for... aligning myself with you, for being attracted to you. But, eventually, as things progressed with the Apocalypse... I don't know. He saw that I was more than Heaven led him to believe and I saw that he was more than just a soldier. A couple months before Sam busted the last Seal, Castiel was in my dreams. Like, literally." She looked over at Crowley and reached to take the glass of juice. "He kissed me. It was already established that we cared about each other by that point, but you know Heaven. So many rules."

"No fraternizing with the humans." Crowley nodded. "Where's the fun in that?"

"Right. So, there was the dream kiss, and then there was a real kiss, and then he told me he couldn't be alone with me anymore because I made it hard for him to concentrate. It would've been sweet, except I know what happens to angels that step out of line. It kinda terrified me that I might be the reason that happened to him." She took a long swig of the juice and cleared her throat. "After he rebelled... I thought, maybe... but he was too busy. He's looking for God. It's a noble mission. We've barely seen each other since... since Lucifer was released."

"But you found time to-"

"Yeah. Pretty cliché, actually. Got trapped together. No way out, no one else around. He, actually, made the move. He made all of the moves, really, because I never thought that he'd... fuck, I thought I was damaged _before_."

"Does he make you happy?" Crowley wanted her to say 'no'. He wanted her to say it was just a fling, that there was nothing real there. He wanted to feel the security of knowing he wouldn't have to fight a celestial being for her affections. But he knew. He knew she wouldn't have allowed the angel to touch her if she didn't feel strongly for him.

"He did." She shook her head. "I don't think I'm even going to be able to _look_ at him anymore, now."

"Do you love him?" Crowley kicked himself for the sentence as soon as it left his mouth, but the chuckle that rocked her chest made him forget it.

"You know, he asked the same question about _you_." She cut her fork through the pancakes and shrugged. "I don't know. I just know that... sometimes when I was with him... I could forget how much pain I'm in. Sometimes, I wasn't tired, anymore. When I knew he was watching me sleep, I didn't have nightmares." She swallowed down a bite of pancake and blinked away tears. "There was a... a calm that I associated with him. A divinity that felt like... Paradise on Earth. But that Grace, that very essence of Heaven, Lucifer used his to..." She cleared her throat, shaking her head.

"I think you ought to stay with me, Marion." 

"What?"

"Well, you can't be around the angel, can't let your brothers see you. You should stay with me." 

"I don't think that's a good idea, Crowley. You remember what happened last time I stayed with you. I'd rather be alone, I think."

"No, you wouldn't. You don't like being alone and I don't like you callin' me 'Crowley'. Please, Marion. You're the only one I've ever wanted to call me by my human name. Please."

Marion found it incredibly difficult to say 'no' to that tone of voice. She took a deep breath and shook her head. "Fergus... I know what you want of me. I can't do this, you know?"

"I don't want anything of you. I just want you to..." Crowley licked his lips. "I'm not going to lie to you. I do want something of you. I want to help you get back on yer feet, help you and your brothers kill Lucifer, and then I want you to sit in the throne beside mine in Hell." He reached across the table and took her hand. "But I'm not going to force you to be my wife. Especially if you are... _with_ the angel. But the first part? Gettin' you back on your feet, helping your brothers take down Lucifer, those aren't optional. I want you happy." 

"I... don't even know what that means. What the fuck even is happy?" She looked down at her hand in his. "Fergus. You can't possibly think you can fix me."

"I'm the reason you went to Hell. I _have_ to fix you. There was a point in time, Pony, when you trusted me; when you loved me. Trust me to help you on this."

She looked up at him and bit her lip. "Two weeks. You've got two weeks to rehab me back to a functional Winchester." She pulled her hand back and took a drink of juice. "My brothers need me. It's the end of the world. They need me. Two weeks."

"I'll take it." He smirked as she started to eat another bite of pancake. "So, a functional Winchester? I just have to get you half as well-adjusted as your average child star."

"Yeah, old school, when they popped 'em full of pills to get 'em to perform." She joked.

**********

Marion was suddenly in the middle of a street, her brothers next to her, as a car slid to a stop on the wet pavement behind them. The driver hit the horn and Dean put his hand on the hood as they moved to get out of the road. Another car stopped as they crossed, but the three of them just moved away. "Where are we?" Marion asked.

"Uh, hopefully 1978." Dean answered.

"Did we make it?" Sam asked, looking around.

Dean pointed at the second car that almost hit them and nodded. "Unless they're bringing Pintos back into production, I uh, I'd say yes." 

"Why?"

"What?" Dean asked, turning to his twin.

"Why are we in the past again?" Marion asked, taking quiet stock of what weapons and tools she had on her body.

"Uh, kinda complicated but boils down to Anna trying to murder us before we're conceived by taking Mom and Dad out." Dean answered, making her nod. He turned around, looking around the street. His eyes fell on Castiel, who was leaning against a car, a rivulet of blood descending from his nostril. "Cas?"

The Winchesters ran for the angel, bending down to check on him. "Hey, hey, hey!" 

"Take it easy. Take it easy. Are you all right?" Dean asked, as they grabbed his arms.

"I'm fine." Cas groaned. "I'm much better than I expected." 

They moved to help him up, but he coughed up blood and went slack, passing out. "Cas?" Sam put his hand over Cas' nose and nodded. "He's breathing. Sort of. What do we do?"

Marion looked down the street. "There's a motel down there. Let's get him a room." 

"Yeah, okay. Let me grab some time-appropriate cash. Be right back." Dean said, disappearing down the street. 

Marion studied Castiel's face as Sam picked him up. His grace was faded in his exhaustion and illness, so it was easier for her to look at him than it had been a month before. "Where've you been?" Sam whispered.

"Places. Bars, mostly."

"What happened in Carthage?"

"I... I can't, Sam. I'm not over it. I..." Marion wiped her sleeve under Cas' nose. "Look, I'm fine enough, now. No more Mercury." 

"Yeah?"

"Yeah." She answered as Dean came around the corner with a black leather wallet in his hand. "Gimme Cas. Go find a phone book and get our parents' address." She picked the angel up and thanked the gods for Jimmy's thin frame.

"You got him?" Dean asked.

"Yeah, yeah. Run ahead and get a room key, D. I'll follow." 

~~~~~~~~~~~~

"Maybe you should stay here with Cas." Dean suggested, quietly, as Marion gently dropped Castiel to the bed. 

"What? He's fine. He just needs to rest. We've got bigger fish to fry."

"Yeah, okay, but Dad's one of those fish. Your relationship with the man-"

She scoffed, sitting beside the angel and looking up at her twin. "Don't be stupid, D. You really think I can't handle being around him? I stuck around, remember?"

"Yeah, except you just got pulled out of God-knows-where because you  _didn't_ stick around after Carthage. Lucifer hit you so hard that I've barely heard from you for the last month. You wouldn't be here if the Twin Link hadn't forced you to be." He said inhaled deeply and looked down at his twin. "And look, I'm not mad that you had to run. We have been in this business long enough that I realize that there's some things that you just don't talk about, but whatever you aren't talking about..."

"I was about to come back, anyway, okay? Seriously." She stood and put her hand on his shoulder. "It took a couple weeks of self-destruction, breaking myself down so I could get brought back up, but I am... functional. Seeing Dad isn't going to fuck me up. Dad in '78 isn't the same man who broke my nose two weeks before Christmas in '92. He hasn't been poisoned, _broken_ , by Mom's death. And, honestly, Dean... I didn't get to see Mom last time we went  _Sound of Thunder_  and if you deprive me of the opportunity here, I'm gonna shoot you."

"All right. But if you look like you're going nutty, I'm sending you back to watch the angel, got it?"

She chuckled. "'Nutty'? Me? You're the one who was in a nuthouse with Martin a few weeks ago."

"On a hunt, sweetheart. My marbles are secure."

"Uh-huh." She smiled, heading for the door. As she and Dean walked out, Sam was looking at a man with an amused look on his face.

"I mean, the mustaches alone." Sam started, smirking.

"So, I paid for Cas for five nights up in the, uh, honeymoon suite. I told the manager 'Do not disturb no matter what'. You know what he said to me?" Dean asked.

"'Yeah. Don't sweat it. Wanna buy some dope?'" Marion responded. Sam snorted.

"Dope. We oughta stick around here, buy some stock in Microsoft."

"Yeah, we might have to if Cas doesn't recover. Is he all right?" 

"What do I look like, Dr. Angel, Medicine Woman? He'll wake up. He's, you know, tough for a little nerdy dude with wings." Dean responded.

"He's not- God, you don't even know him, do you?" Marion rolled her eyes, before turning to Sam. "He's a warrior. His grace is already rebounding. He's fine."

"Well, if he landed like that, hopefully so did Anna. Should buy us some time."

"So, did you find 'em?" Dean asked, referring to the ripped-out phone book page in Sam's hand.

"Yeah. Uh, the Winchesters: 485 Robintree." Sam held the paper up to show his siblings.

"Let's go pop in on the folks." When they pulled up in front of their parents' first home, Sam rushed for the house, causing the twins to rush after him. "Sam. Sam. Wait, wait, wait, wait."

"Dean, Anna could be here any second."

"What, exactly, are we gonna march up there and tell them?" Marion asked, quietly.

"Uh, the truth." Sam said it like it was obvious.

"What, that their kids are back from the future to save them from an  _angel_ gone Terminator? Come on. Those movies haven't even come out yet." Dean reasoned.

"Well, then tell her demons are after 'em. I mean, she thinks you're a hunter, right?"

"Yeah, a hunter who disappeared right when her dad died. She's gonna love me." Dean considered their options, then nodded. "Just follow my lead." Dean walked purposefully to the door and pressed the doorbell. When the door opened to reveal Mary, her blond hair shining in the porch light, Marion and Sam both stared at her in awe. 

"Hi, Mary."

"You can't be here." Mary whispered.

"I'm sorry if this is a bad time."

"You don't understand. I'm not-" Mary looked between them, causing Marion to look down, aware of her staring. Sam kept his awed expression. "I don't do that anymore. I have a normal life now. You have to go." Their mother tried to close the door on them, but Dean put a hand out to stop her.

"I'm sorry but this is important, okay?" Dean said, quietly.

The sound of a throat clearing behind Mary sent an involuntary chill down Marion's spine. That was an unmistakable sound. That was the sound of a slightly irritated John Winchester. The twins straightened as John stepped up behind Mary, his hand caressing her shoulder. "Sorry, sweetie, they're just..."

"Mary's cousins." Marion said, quickly, forcing a smile as her heart pounded in her chest. Mary mirrored a forced smile.

"Yeah, we couldn't stop through town without swinging by and saying 'hey', now, could we?" Dean picked up where Marion started. He reached out to shake John's hand. "Dean."

"You look familiar." John said.

"Really? Yeah, you do, too, actually, you know? We must have met sometime. Small towns, right? Gotta love 'em." Dean covered.

"I'm John." John moved to shake Sam's hand. Sam stared at it for a few seconds before taking it. 

"This is Sam." Dean introduced.

"Sam. Uh, Mary's father was a Sam." John mused. Sam nodded. 

"It's a family name." Marion said, staring at Sam's hand still clutching John's. "Like 'Mary'. My mother was Mary, so I get to be Marion." 

"You okay, pal? You look a little spooked." John asked, causing Sam to finally release his hand.

"Oh. Oh, yeah. Just a... long trip."

"Yeah." The twins confirmed.

"Well, Sam and Dean and Marion were just on their way out." Mary said, trying to end the awkward situation.

"What? They just got here. Real happy to meet folks from Mary's side. Please, come on in for a beer." John offered.

"Twist my arm." Dean smirked as Mary glared at him.

Marion kept her eyes on her beer, helpless to stop the panic and anger and anguish swirling around in her. _*She looks just like me. Or, really, I look just like her. Gods, no wonder Dad hated me. Couldn't look at me without seeing her.*_  Sam fumbled through an explanation about why he was staring at Mary, which Marion only half paid attention to. She didn't come back to the conversation until John asked what they did for a living and her brothers foolishly gave different answers. Mary stood. "Oh, gosh. It's almost 7. I hate to be rude, but I gotta get dinner ready."

"Maybe they could stay." John offered.

"I'm sure they have to leave." Mary said, pointedly. The phone rang in another room.

"Uh, look, please stay. You know, it would mean a lot to me. I haven't met much of Mary's side of the family." John said, before getting up to answer the phone.

Mary stood and her children followed suit. "You have to leave. Now." Mary demanded.

"Okay, just listen-" Dean started but Mary interrupted.

"No, you listen. Last time I saw you, a demon killed my parents. Now you waltz in here like you're family? Whatever you want, no. Leave me alone."

"You and John are in danger." Sam said.

"What are you talking about?" Mary asked, the threat to John stopping her.

"Something's coming for you." Marion said, looking up from her feet to lock eyes with her namesake.

"Demon?" Mary was barely audible.

"Not exactly." Dean replied.

"Well, what, then?"

"It's kind of hard to explain, okay? It's-it's-" Dean faltered.

"An angel." Sam and Marion finished. 

Mary laughed. "What? There's no such thing."

"You remember the good old days when we thought that was true?" Marion raised an eyebrow as she looked to her brothers.

"Yeah, I wish it _were_ true, but they're twice as strong as as demons... and bigger dicks."

"Why would an angel want to kill us?" Mary asked.

"It's a long story, and we'll tell you the whole thing, but right now, you've got to trust us, and we got to go. Look at my face and tell me if I'm lying to you." Dean said, leaning forward.

"Okay." Mary relented. "Where do we go?"

"Out of here. We gotta move now, though." Dean said, urgently.

"Okay. But, what do I tell John?" 

"Just tell him-" Marion looked around, realizing that she hadn't heard her father's voice recently. "John?" She called. They walked out of the living room into the foyer where the phone was. Mary looked over at the notebook next to the phone. They looked over the note. **_Back in 15 J_**

"Shit. Where would he go at this time of night?" Sam asked, panic in his voice. 

"The garage." The women said, simultaneously. Mary looked confused about the other woman knowing the answer to the question, but shrugged it off as Marion rushed out of the house toward the little blue car they stole.

The sound of a crash met their ears as they pulled up outside the garage. They entered, as stealthy as possible, as John hit Anna with a crowbar. Dean grabbed the angel's attention and was thrown through the window for his trouble. Mary grabbed the angel blade from the ground where Dean dropped it, but Marion twisted her hand in the angel's hair and yanked her backward. Anna disappeared from her grasp, appearing behind her and tossing her across the room into the shelf that crashed right before they walked into the garage. Mary took to fighting with the angel, culminating in her stabbing the redhead in the chest with the crowbar. Anna looked down at the bloody crowbar for a second before pulling it out and dropping it. "Sorry. It's not that easy to kill and angel."

"No." Sam said, bringing attention to himself and the bloody sigil on the wall. "But you can distract 'em." He finished, pressing his hand to the sigil, causing Anna to disappear in a flash of light. The group looked around the garage, everyone noticing the way John was staring at Mary.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Marion sat slumped in the middle of the back seat, between her brothers as their father drove them toward Mary's old home. Daddy was angry and she couldn't help the reaction she had to that situation. Keep quiet, make yourself small, don't draw attention. "Monsters." John said, exasperated. "Monsters?"

"Yes." Mary said, her tone just as exasperated.

"Monsters are real." 

"I'm sorry, I didn't know how to-" Mary started, but John continued turning a bit behind the wheel.

"And you fight them? All of you?"

"Yeah." Sam answered.

"How long?" 

"All my life. John, just try to understand." 

"She didn't exactly have a choice-" Dean began defending Mary at the same time as Mary did.

"Shut up, all of you! Look, not another word, or so help me, I will turn this car around!"

Marion almost giggled at that, but let the silence in the car reign. "Wow. Awkward family road trip." Dean muttered.

"No kidding." Sam responded.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Mary led the group into the house. "Place has been in the family for years." She flipped a rug up to reveal a Devil's Trap. "Devil's Trap. Pure iron fixtures, of course. Um, there should be salt and holy water in the pantry, knives, guns."

"All that stuff will do is piss it off." Sam said, shaking his head.

"So, what will kill it? Or slow it down, at least?" 

"Not much." Marion answered, taking a deep breath.

Mary scoffed. "Great."

"She said 'not much', not 'Nothing'. We packed." Dean grabbed his duffel and dropped it on the table. He pulled out a piece of paper with the angel-banishing sigil and showed it to Mary. "If we put this up and she comes close, we beam her right off the starship." Mary made a sound of acknowledgment so Sam grabbed one of the jugs of holy oil.

"This is holy oil. It's kinda like a, like a Devil's Trap for angels." Marion looked over at John. It was obvious that he was feeling completely out of place in the conversation. "Come on. I'll show you how it works." Mary gave a look to John before following Sam out of the room. 

"Hey, what's the deal with the thing on the paper?" John asked, stepping forward. 

"It's a sigil. That means-" Dean started to explain but John just cut him off.

"I don't care what it means. Where does it go?"

"On a wall or a door." Marion answered.

"How big should I make it?"

"John-" Dean started.

"What? Y'all might have treated me like a fool, but I am not useless. I can draw a damn..." John picked up the paper. "...whatever it is- a sigil." 

"Why don't you go help Sam out? Okay? 'Cause this has got to be done in..." 

"It's gotta be done in human blood." Marion challenged. 

John grabbed the hunting knife from the table and unsheathed it, before slicing it across his left palm. "So, how big?" John took the challenge seamlessly.

"I'll show you." Dean chuckled.

"What?"

"All of a sudden, you... you really remind me of my dad." John looked down at his palm before following after Dean.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"So, what's your story?" John asked, working on a sigil in the kitchen. Marion shrugged. "You're Dean's twin sister?"

Marion sighed. "He was born 5 minutes before me."

"Have I done somethin' to you?" John asked, turning to her. "Because your answers are short with me and you haven't looked at me but once the whole night through."

She forced herself to look up into his eyes. She swallowed. "No, John. You haven't done anything to me." _*Yet.*_  She added in her head. "Dean's right, though. You remind me of our dad."

"And that's a bad thing? I-I talked with Sam. I know he was hard on you guys, that he brought you up in this lifestyle..."

"I have no problem that he raised us as hunters, John. It's not that."

"Then, what _is_ it, because I'm not used to women looking at me like that?"

"My father was a damaged man, and damaged men don't keep that shit to themselves. They share it. Misery loves company, you know?" She swallowed. "I don't blame him for the things he did. He did..."

"...the best he could?" John finished.

"Sam scooped me on that, huh?" She said, smirking. "Yeah. It's not easy being a hunter, not easy being a single father. He managed it pretty well, considering."

"So, how'd he share his damage?"

"What, other than disappearing for weeks at a time, being blackout drunk when he _was_ around, forcing Dean and me to raise ourselves and Sammy and keep him safe?" She bit her lip before continuing. "When I was 12, my dad started beating me. It started out that he was drunk and angry that I looked so much like my mom... Thick blond hair, fair skin, slight frame... I had her nose until he broke it. I didn't go to the hospital so it didn't set right." She looked away from the growing look of horror on John's face, focusing on the table in front of her. "When he was drunk and we were alone, I was his punching bag. He took a lot of stress out on me."

"Why? Because you looked like your mother?"

"I was a constant reminder of her, even after I started with the Schwarzkopf Poly Color to hide the blond." She looked up. "It's not a big deal. It was only 4 years of my life, which..." She chuckled. "In the grand scheme of my life was really not that long."

"He abused his daughter. He broke bones and-and neglected you. How can you say that isn't a big deal?"

"Because I forgave him. Years ago." She felt a bit of catharsis telling John that she forgave him, even if he didn't know that she was saying it about him.

"But how?" He sounded angry that she could've let it go.

"I love him. Even after everything he did, even now years after his death, I love my father. And I understand that his... all the ways he wronged me, it wasn't about me. It was weakness, his weakness, and he knew... He knew when he woke up the morning after the first time that I was the only one who could handle his weakness." John didn't voice his confusion but his face showed it, so she continued. "He woke up, hungover. He remembered what he did, I could tell from how he examined me out of the corner of his eyes. I didn't say anything, didn't cry, didn't flinch away from him when he stumbled to the bathroom. I just handed him a beer from the cooler and what I hadn't downed from the bottle of Tylenol. He knew that I could carry his damage, so he passed it off to me for as long as I could handle it.

I wish I had figured that out when I was younger, but I didn't get my place in the foundation of the family until years after the demon killed him. Maybe if I'd kept taking his heat, he'd still be alive."

"Wow." John whispered in confused reverence. "You hunters are way fucked up, aren't ya?"

Marion chuckled, a genuine smile on her face. "Yeah. Yeah, we are, John."

"No wonder Mary got out. This whole scene is insane."

"Mary got out because the life was hard enough _before_ a demon came through and killed every hunter she loved. She was already planning to run away with you."

"How do you know that?"

"Just... She's not the first hunter to want out. The whole normal life thing, it's enticing. Sammy tried it. He ran off to college."

"You haven't tried to not be a hunter?"

Marion chuckled, finally feeling comfortable talking with John. "I entertained the idea, but I couldn't leave Dean. Dean couldn't leave Dad. By the time Dad was gone... well, it wasn't possible for me to walk away, anymore. I was in too deep and... my brothers needed me, needed a strong foundation."

"You're... you're pretty amazing. You remind me of this Master Sergeant I met in 'nam. Her COs were determined to keep her stateside, but she knew that we needed her." 

Marion balked a bit at John calling her amazing. She was certain that had never happened. "Thanks, John. Means a lot." She looked down at the table and cleared her throat.

"I'm gonna go get the door by the garage." John picked up the knife and the paper and walked away. She started toward the room where her brothers and Mary were. 

"Listen, you think you can have that normal life that you want so bad, but you can't. I'm sorry. It's all gonna go rotten. You are gonna die, and your children will be cursed." Sam's voice caused Marion to stop.

Mary didn't respond for a few seconds. "There-there has to be a way."

"No. This is the way. Leave John." Dean urged. Marion's jaw tightened. 'Leave John.' Her brothers were advocating for them to never exist. None of them. 

"I can't."

"This is bigger than us. There are so many more lives at stake-" Dean started as Marion walked into the room.

"You don't understand! _I can't._ It's too late." Mary said, tearfully.

"She's already pregnant." Marion said, shaking her head at her brothers. "Can't you math? Thanks for letting me in on the 'we would have never existed' plan. I could have saved you the time with a look at a calendar." 

"We were early. Dad said we were early. So, she shouldn't be pregnant for another few-"

"Dad said we were early because she didn't tell him about us for another month."

"Hey, we got a problem." John showed up behind Sam. "Those blood things, the sigils-they're gone." 

"'Gone', as in..." Sam asked.

"I-I drew one on the back of the door, I turned around, and when I turned back again, it was a smudge." 

Dean moved to look at the one in the kitchen. "He's right."

Mary bent down to check the oil. "There's no more Holy Oil."

The lights started to stutter and Sam pulled out an angel blade as a roar of a horrid voice called across the house, announcing "I have arrived." as windows shattered. The door slammed open as the group shook the glass off of them. "Who the hell are you?" Dean demanded as the angel walked in.

"Uriel." Marion answered, recognizing the tainted light under the vessel.

"Oh, come on." Dean backed away toward the middle of the living room.

Sam grabbed Mary's arm. "Go." He turned to head out of the room, but Anna stood on the stairs. 

The fight moved fast, but Marion wasn't present for it. Anna, fearing Marion's freezing ability, knocked her out quickly before hitting John hit out of a window. When Marion came to, an angel was walking into the living room, wearing John. "Michael." Anna gasped out. The archangel placed his hand on her shoulder and the redhead burst into flames from the inside, before Michael turned to Uriel.

"Michael. I didn't know." 

"Goodbye, Uriel." Michael snapped his fingers and Uriel was suddenly gone. He moved closer to Mary, who looked at him warily.

"What did you do to John?"

"John is fine."

"Who- what are you?"

"Shh." Michael put his fingers to his lips before pressing them to her temple. She dropped to the ground, asleep. Marion crawled for Sam, putting her hand over his wound as Michael and Dean approached each other. "Well, I'd say this conversation is long overdue, wouldn't you?"

"Fix him." Dean demanded, pointing at Sam.

"First, we talk. Then I fix your darling little Sammy."

"How'd you get in our dad, anyway?"

"I told him I could save his wife, and he said 'yes'."

"I guess they oversold me and Mare on us being your only vessels."

"You're my best vessels, but not the only ones."

"What is that supposed to mean?"

"It's a bloodline."

"A bloodline?" Marion spoke up.

"Stretching back to Cain and Abel. It's in your blood, your father's blood, your family's blood."

"Awesome. Six degrees of Heaven Bacon. What do you want with me?" Dean growled.

"You really don't know the answer to that?"

"Well, you know I ain't gonna say 'yes', so why are you here? What do you want with me?!"

"I just want you to understand what you and I have to do."

"Oh, we get it. You got beef with your brother." Marion spat out.

"Get some therapy, pal. Don't take it out on our planet!"

"You're wrong. Lucifer defied our Father, and he betrayed me. But still... I don't want this any more than you would want to kill Sam." Michael turned and looked down at Marion and Sam. "You know, my brother, I practically raised him. I took care of him in a way most people could never understand, and I still love him. But I am going to kill him because it is right and I have to." Michael turned back to look at Dean.

"Oh, because God says so?"

"Yes. From the beginning, he knew this was how it was going to end."

"And you're just gonna do whatever God says?"

"Yes, because I am a good son." 

"Okay, well, trust me, pal. Take it from someone who knows, that is a dead-end street."

"And you think _you_ know better than my father? One unimportant little man and his abomination siblings. What makes you think you get to choose?"

"Because I gotta believe that I can choose what I do with my unimportant little life."

"You're wrong. You know how I know?" Michael turned, looking around the room. "Think of a million random acts of chance that let John and Mary be born, to meet, to fall in love, to have the three of you. Think of the million random choices that you make, and yet, how each and every one of them brings you closer to your destiny. Do you know what that is? Because it's not random. It's not chance. It's a plan that is playing itself out perfectly. Free will's an illusion, Dean. That's why you're going to say 'yes'." Dean's face fell at the thought. "Oh, buck up! It could be worse. You know, unlike my brothers, I won't leave you a drooling mess when I'm done wearing you." 

"Well, what about my dad?"

"Better than new. In fact, I'm gonna do your mom and your dad a favor."

"What?" The twins chorused.

"Scrub their minds. They won't remember me or you."

"You can't do that!" Marion shouted.

"I'm just giving your mother what she wants. She can go back to her husband, her family-"

"She's gonna walk right into that nursery!" Dean exclaimed.

"Obviously. And you always knew that was going to play out one way or another." Michael turned back to Dean. "You can't fight City Hall." Michael bent down, looking at Marion as he reached out and touched Sam and her at the same time. 

Sam gasped and sat up, running his hand across his abdomen. "Hey. It's okay. We're okay. We're back." Marion wrapped her arms around Sam, who looked shocked. "This the motel room y'all were in?" She asked, pulling back. Sam nodded. "Awesome. We exist."

Sam scoffed and chuckled as Dean appeared next to the door. "Hey, looks like Dean still exists, too."

"I need a drink." Dean pulled his keys out of his pocket. 

As Dean pulled a brand new bottle of whiskey out of a brown paper bag, Sam pulled three motel-room plastic cups out of their bags and Marion worked on an email to Crowley, explaining where she'd disappeared to and what happened. Castiel appeared behind Sam, who dropped the cups and turned, quickly to grab the angel and keep him from falling over. "Castiel. Hey. Hey, hey. Whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa."

"Cas!" The twins dropped what they were doing and moved to help Castiel stay up.

"We got you."

"You son of a bitch. You made it." Dean said, relieved and impressed.

"I... I did? I'm very surprised." Castiel said, his nose bleeding as he collapsed.

"Whoa. You're okay."

"Bed?" Marion suggested.

"Yeah, yeah." 

The Winchesters looked down at Cas, laying on the bed. "Well, I could use that drink now." 

"Yeah." Marion and Sam agreed.

Dean walked over and poured three drinks. "Well... this is it."

"This is what?" Sam asked, taking a sip of whiskey.

"Team Free Will. One ex-blood junkie, one dropout with six bucks to his name, a 250 year old sorceress with PTSD from Hell, and Mr. Comatose over there. It's awesome."

"It's not funny."

Dean took a drink. "I'm not laughing." 

"They all say we'll say 'yes'." Sam said.

"I know. It's getting annoying." Dean responded.

"What if they're right?" Sam asked, softly.

"They're not." Marion set her drink on the counter and sighed. If she started drinking, maybe she wouldn't be able to stop.

"I mean, why, why would we? Any of us. But... I've been weak before." 

"Sam."

"Michael got Dad to say 'yes'." Sam reminded.

"That was different." Marion assured.

"Anna was about to kill Mom." Dean argued.

"And if you could save Mom... what would you say?"

"You idiots don't get it." Marion said, picking up her drink and downing it in three large gulps. "She had to die. Every time. No matter how many times we go to the past, it will always be..." She grabbed the bottle off the table and pulled the cork. "She will always go into that nursery and she will _always_ die, because that's how it happens every time. Changing anything changes everything and we can't fix it, because if we do... we don't exist. We save Mom and we don't grow up as hunters. We aren't hunters, we never have to worry about dealing with angels. We don't deal with angels, we never go back in time and save mom. Do you get it? There is no saving her!"

The brothers got silent, drinking their whiskey as she started drinking from the bottle. "You think you might wanna slow down, there, Mare?" Dean asked as he watched her chug the liquor.

She dropped the bottle from her mouth to hold it near her side. She swallowed, shaking her head. "Don't worry. I'll leave enough for you guys." She took another drink and sat on the bed next to Cas' sleeping body. 

"Hey, uh, are we gonna talk about... about where you've been and what happened in Carthage?" Sam asked, lightly. 

"Lucifer happened in Carthage. What do you want me to say?"

"What did he do to you?" Dean asked.

Marion sighed and took a deep breath. "He... broke me." She took a long gulp of the whiskey and looked up at them. "He didn't even have to touch me to do it." 

"What does that mean?" The brothers asked, in tandem.

"That thing the angels do, where they manipulate stuff with their grace? Like when they hold us back without touching us with their vessel?" Marion took another swig as her brothers nodded. " _That_. But Lucifer used his to do what Alistair did."

"Are-"

"And Cas was right there, stuck in a ring of Holy Fire, listening to the whole thing. Lucifer bragged to Cas about how he was gonna break me without even getting his hands dirty. So, I left, because I couldn't let you see me how I was my first hundred years in Hell. Broken and tired and wishing I could die."

Dean dropped to his knees in front of her. "You shoulda talked to us, Pony. We could have helped."

"No, you couldn't have. Thank you, but... Like I said, I needed time to process everything. I had to spend a few weeks letting everything burn before I could rebuild."

"Letting everything burn?" Sam echoed. "What does that even mean?"

"It means liquor to the point of blacking out, every night for two weeks. It means driving a stolen car too fast in the rain while blackout drunk. It's hustling pool at a biker bar and hoping one of them steps to me about it."

"It's a death wish, with the added bonus of you being hundreds of miles away from any people who'd care to stop you." 

Sam was angry, but Dean's eyes shined with understanding. He squeezed her knee and stood. "Where's your stuff?"

"California." She answered, handing the bottle to her twin. "Up near Orick."

"That's almost Oregon. What were you doin' all the way up in Northern California?" Dean asked, his eyebrows coming together.

"I was working on part two of the plan; the rebuild. I was hiking. Redwood National."

"I'm sorry. You know what could be in those woods, right?" Sam looked at her, exasperated.

"I checked. No Wendigos, no beasts. Just peaceful hiking, commune with nature shit, okay? I wasn't on a hunt. I was... chasing calm, okay?"

"What made you even _think_ of that?" Dean set the bottle on the table and leaned against the partition. "You've never gone hiking in your life."

She couldn't admit that the hike had been Fergus' idea, so she shrugged. "It just seemed like the right thing to do."

"And it worked so well. I mean, you're the picture of mental health." Sam snapped, stepping away from the others to go to the bathroom.

"Hey. I'm a perfectly functional Winchester, all right?"

"Well, that's not a very high bar." Dean smirked. "Hey. You okay?" 

"Yeah. Uh, so if you would let me borrow the Impala, I could go get my shit and be back before Cas wakes up."

"No."

"What?"

"Sam can stay here with Cas. You and me, we'll go to Cali together."

"But why?"

"Because you just told me that you spent 2 weeks courting death and I don't trust you driving my car. Besides, I ain't seen you in a month and I missed you and Sammy's gonna be mopey for a few days and I'd like to miss as much of that as possible. That enough 'why'?"

Marion nodded. She liked that Dean worried about her, instead of just blowing it off like he used to. "You wanna get some sleep before we head out?"

"Nah. I'm good. Anyway, there's an angel in my bed." Dean smirked as he grabbed his jacket. "Which sounds like-"

"A porno." Marion finished with him, standing. "I'd watch it."

"Me, too." Dean knocked on the bathroom door. "Hey, Sammy! Mare and I are gonna go get her shit from California. Keep an eye on Cas, will ya?"

"Wait a sec." Sam called, as the sound of the sink stopped and the door opened. "You aren't taking detours or anything, are you? I don't know how to deal with him if something goes wrong."

"Nothing will go wrong. He'll be full-power, searching for God and not understanding our references in no time." Marion patted Sam's shoulder and opened the motel room door.

"What she said." Dean mimicked her patting of Sam and walked out after her.

"You didn't answer my question!" Sam called after them.


	29. What's On The Other Side

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This ended up waaaayyyy longer than I intended. Please, enjoy.

Marion moved through the aisles of the gas station convenience store, debating salty versus sweet for their snacks. "Can't go wrong with trail mix." She muttered, picking up a bag and adding it to her armload of snacks.

"Glad to see you're eating even when I'm not around." Crowley said, appearing in her peripheral vision before stepping in front of her. She looked out the front of the store to the gas pumps. "Don't worry, pet. He's too busy to notice me."

"You shouldn't be here, Fergus. You tryin' to get caught?"

"There's a redhead with double Ds and a tank top out there. I'm fine. You okay?"

"I'm good. I mean, good-ish. Better than I was 2 weeks ago."

"I see Dean stepped up to keep you safe."

Marion nodded. "It's nice. Still... unexpected. Used to be, he'd never dream of leaving a mopey Sam behind to go off with me."

"So. How was 1978?" Crowley asked, walking toward the cashier.

"Spent most of it trying to not die, and not cease to exist." She dropped the snacks on the counter and turned to him. "Michael was... I don't know how to describe him. He... didn't seem like the rest of 'em, you know? Powerful, cocky, but... calm? I don't know. Think I'd've probably cried for _him_ too, before..."

Crowley handed a $20 bill to the cashier, who handed a bag full of snacks to Marion. "Well, I'm glad you made it back all right."

"Of course, I did. I'm unshakable." She said, smirking. "No, seriously. If I had been taken to the past before you... fixed me... I wouldn't have survived. I'd've..." She bit her lip and looked down. "It's been suggested that I'm a bit... prone to... suicide. If I could've... I might have..."

The demon reached out and squeezed her shoulder. "That's why we worked on it. So that you could handle all of the things that you and your brothers have to deal with."

Marion looked out the front door of the convenience store. Dean was leaning against the gas pump with his hands in his pockets, talking to the redheaded woman. She turned back to the demon and wrapped her arms around him, tightly. Crowley didn't hesitate in returning the embrace, holding her close to him and closing his eyes, inhaling the smell of her hair. "Thank you, Fergus."

He pulled back, resisting the near-constant urge to kiss her that he had when she was near. "Do anything for you, pet."

"I believe you." She pulled away, smiling up at him as she placed a hand on the door. "I really do."

"Good. Don't forget to text." Crowley disappeared as she opened the door and walked out to the Impala.

"Maybe on your way back." A sultry woman's voice hit Marion's ears as she approached the car.

"Oh, sweetheart. I'll text you before I even get to the county line."

"D., got the snacks. You, uh, done gettin' yours?"

Dean turned, smiling brightly at her. "Yeah. I was just passin' the time, making friends with Tiffany here. She's gonna show me a nice rave spot on our way back."

Marion chuckled. "A rave, huh?"

"Yeah. Why not?" Dean said, tucking his cell phone into his pocket as he got into the driver's seat. "It's the end of the world."

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Cas was back searching for God before Marion and Dean made it back to the motel with her stuff, so they moved on to a small town where a young couple had eaten each other. "Wait. They ate _each other_? H-how would that even-" Marion asked, looking over Dean's shoulder at his laptop screen.

"It doesn't say. We'll have to figure it out, ourselves, I guess."

"Right. Okay. So, protective hex bags, just in case." Marion suggested. It took no time for them to get immersed in the weirdness of the case. The couple had, indeed, eaten each other to the point of their stomachs almost bursting. Another couple followed and by the time Sam found the Enochian marks on their hearts, Marion was feeling the depression that usually accompanied Valentine's Day, for her. "I miss you." She said, into her phone, standing outside as Sam, Dean and Castiel sat at a table in Dirty Devil's Nightclub, which was actually a restaurant.

"You all right, Pony?" Crowley asked, his voice a bit tight. "You don't usually start a conversation with something so sentimental."

"I don't know. We're on this case and these couples keep killing each other and there's a cupid that might be going nutso and... Tomorrow is Valentine's Day, you know. I've never had a Valentine." She rolled her eyes. "I'm being stupid and I don't know why."

"I can come see you, if you want."

"Oh, I would love that, Fergus!" She exclaimed, before looking in the window to see that her brothers and Castiel were gone from the table. "Oh, man. I think something's happening inside. Might've found the cupid."

"I could come back later." Crowley said, popping up in her peripheral vision.

"Fuck it. I'll ask what happened, later." She said, smiling as she wrapped her arms around his neck. "I'm so happy to see you."

"You haven't been this ecstatic to see me since you were a girl, Pony. I'll keep in mind how Valentine's Day gets you."

She pulled back, but didn't let him go. "Fergus, I... I just... I missed you."

Crowley didn't even try to stop the smile that spread across his face. "Take a walk with me?"

"Definitely." She took his hand and started down the street with him.

"So, a cupid, huh?"

"Yeah, I guess. That's what Cas said, anyway."

"Oh, so the angel's here, too?"

"Yup."

"And you called _me_."

"Yeah."

"Why?" Crowley wanted to hear it. Hearing 'I miss you', walking down the sidewalk with her hand in his, it was amazing, but he needed to hear why.

"Because... I just really wanted to be around you. You saved me from myself, Fergus, and you've always been around to help me and..."

"You'd rather be around me than Castiel?"

"Right now? Yeah. For some reason, I'm really craving your companionship."

"Well, I'm not one to deny the cravings of a beautiful woman."

They were sitting on a park bench, cuddling together, when her cell phone started to go off. She groaned as she answered it, "What, D.?"

"Where the hell are you? Cas found the cupid, it wasn't him. Another weird body dropped and you are nowhere to be found."

"I went for a walk. So, it's a good thing, right? That it wasn't a cupid, that's a good thing."

"Yeah, except bodies keep droppin' and we don't know why and you disappeared without an explanation."

"Am I not allowed to go for a walk, D.?"

"Well, last time you were disappearing without saying anything, you were working with a demon. I don't have a reason to be suspicious here, Pony?"

"I'm not doing _any_ work, Dean. I'm enjoying a park bench, right now. I never get to enjoy the little things. Okay? I will be back to the motel in a little while, okay?"

"Yeah, whatever." Dean hung up and Marion stared at her cell phone for a few moments before turning back to Crowley.

"I... I should probably..."

Crowley grabbed her arms and pulled her into his lap. "Don't go. Please, just... stay with me." For some reason he couldn't identify, he didn't want her to be away from him.

"Fergus. I have to- My brothers need me to-"

"No. I do. I need you. Please, Marion, just a little bit longer."

Marion smiled and kissed Crowley's cheek, before laying her head against his shoulder. It wasn't until the sun was getting low in the sky, hours after Sam texted her that the DB had eaten himself to death, that Marion pulled herself away from Crowley. "I have to go back to-to my brothers. You'll be-"

"Don't go. Come on. Just-" Crowley looked down. Why the fuck was he feeling so damn needy? He sighed, loudly, as he came to a realization. "Oh, fuck."

"What is it, Fergus?"

"I jus' realized what's happenin' here." He chuckled. "And it's funny, 'cause I should've seen it hours ago, but... I've been so hungry for your attention that I... I couldn't see _why_ I was starving."

"What are you talking about?"

"You don't think it's weird, how you're feelin'? How you suddenly don't want to be away from me?"

"No. I always want to be around you, I just normally don't-"

"Pursue it? You don't normally call me and tell me you miss me. You don't normally spend hours sitting in my lap with your head against my chest. Pony, none of this is normal. Because... you and me, we're both real good at keepin' our desires to ourselves. Our hungers, they generally stay buried, but something in this town is making us... famished." Marion shook her head, not quite getting it. "This town is under the influence of the Horseman, Famine. He's eating the souls of the people dying in this town."

"What?"

"The people who died, you said a cupid got them?"

"Yeah. The first 4, anyway."

"Cupid makes them crave each other, Famine makes them voracious. This last one, how'd he die?"

"He ate himself to death." She whispered.

"He was literally famished. You and me, we're just... starved for each other's company. Always knew you loved me." He smirked at her and she blushed.

"Say the same for you. Okay, so... there's a Horseman here. How... what do I... how do I help fix this when I don't even want to leave your side?"

"You could try to let your brothers and the angel figure it out themselves, or... I could leave."

"Could you, though?"

"I'm a demon, pet. I am in complete control of myself. I can leave whenever I want."

"Then, do it... because my brothers need my help. I can only imagine what Dean's starving for... and I know what Sam's gonna be crazy for and you, as a demon, need to be far away from him."

"I love when you're concerned for my well-being, Pony. I'll go, but... I hate to be away from you."

"I know. Me, too. But... we... I gotta... Please, leave, because I know that _I_ can't." She said, looking down.

Crowley swallowed, then disappeared. Marion immediately felt empty, but she shook it off and ran for the Diamond Jack Motel. As she approached the room, she heard Dean freaking out. "You gotta beam him to, like, Montana. Anywhere but here."

"It won't work. He's already infected. The hunger is just gonna travel with him." Castiel responded as Marion opened the door and stepped into the room.

"Well, then, what do we do?" Dean asked.

"You go cut that bastard's finger off." Sam responded. Marion could hear the same strung-out tone in his voice.

Dean glared at her as he turned away from their brother. "You heard him."

"But, Dean... before you go, you better... you better lock me down... but good."

Dean nodded and turned to Marion as she pulled a set of handcuffs out of her bag. "You took a long, long fucking walk."

"D., can we do this another time?"

"Not really. Famine hit you?" Dean growled.

"Does it look like Famine hit me? Am I shoving hamburgers in my face? Am I drinking myself to death? Do you even have any kind of clue about what I might be starving for?"

"Attention. Affection." Dean answered. "Love, not sex."

Marion bit her lip. "Wow." She nodded. "Yeah, you're right. But, I'm not... who'm I gonna get that from, D.? No one. So... can we move-"

"Where'd you go to get that affection, huh? Where have you been?" Dean asked, as he cuffed Sam to the sink in the bathroom.

"I WENT TO THE PARK!" She shouted. She shook her head and sighed. "Can we just go put an end to this, please?"

"All right, well, just hang in there. We'll be back as soon as we can." Dean said, kneeling next to Sam.

"Be careful. And... hurry."

Dean nodded, patting Sam's shoulder and heading out of the bathroom. Castiel pushed the large wooden wardrobe in front of the door and followed the twins out. "So, the park?" Cas asked as they approached the Impala.

"Yes, the park. You gonna be all pissed off 'cause I went to the park while you went to the White Castle?"

"No. I... just feel like... _were you with him?_ " Castiel asked, quietly, as Dean got into the driver's side.

"Cas..."

"You were."

She shook her head. "Yes, but... it's... I... I just... I just wanted to have someone hold me."

"Not _someone_. Him. The demon."

She swallowed. "I can't, with you, I can't anymore, Cas! After Lucifer..."

"That wasn't my fault, Marion."

"And it's not my fault that I'm missing Fergus! Not anymore than it's your fault that you were noshing on hamburgers. It's not my fault that I look at you, I see your grace and I remember what happened to me. I'm trying to get past it, but it's not something I can just turn off! Fergus makes me feel like everything might be okay and I can't help that."

"Hey, the lovers spat can wait 'til after we put down Famine, okay?" Dean said, rolling down the window. Marion took a deep breath and got into the backseat, allowing the angel to take the front. As they waited in the car for the demons to show up and steal the soul of the old ME, Marion leaned against her hand. She felt cold, upset, tired. "You were at the park with your demon friend, weren't you?" Dean asked, his eyes not leaving the front door of the hospital.

"No secrets, right? I promised that. I was with Fergus. I miss him... and he... he misses me."

"And you... you, what, called him up and said, 'Come see me?'."

"D.... I can't even... I just wanted someone to treat me..."

"You don't talk to him anymore, Mare. You stopped talking to him for a reason, remember? Look, I know that things with you and Cas are a little rocky right now because of Lucifer but... Cas is good people. Fergus is not. Fergus is a demon and there are _no_ good demons. You can work things out with Cas. I know you can."

Marion looked down. She couldn't explain it to her twin. She knew that, eventually, she might be okay with Castiel again, but she just couldn't look at him without seeing Lucifer. "Yeah. You're right."

Castiel appeared in the passenger seat with a bag of burgers, which caused Dean to turn to him. "Are you serious?"

"These make me... very happy." Cas chuckled as he ate the burger.

"How many is that?" Dean asked, rolling his eyes.

"I lost count. It's in the low hundreds." Dean whistled, exasperated. "What I don't understand is... where is your hunger, Dean?"

"Huh?"

"That's a good question, actually." Marion piped up.

"Well, slowly but surely, everyone in this town is falling prey to Famine, but so far, you seem unaffected."

"Hey, when I want to drink, I drink. When I want sex, I go get it. Same goes for a sandwich, or a fight."

"So... you're saying you're just well-adjusted?" Cas asked.

Marion scoffed at the idea of any Winchester being well-adjusted. "God, no. I'm just well-fed."

"There." Marion pointed at the entrance to the clinic, where a demon in a black suit was leaving, a briefcase in hand. Dean turned the key in the ignition and followed the demon's SUV. "So, what's our plan, guys?"

"Cas can get this done fast, right? Pop in, gank the demons, cut the ring off of Famine and pop back out." Dean suggested.

"Sounds good."

As Dean pulled the Impala to a stop out in front of a BigGerson's restaurant, Cas was looking sadly at his empty wrapper. "Demons. You wanna go over the plan again?" Dean looked over at the angel. "Hey, Happy Meal. The plan?"

"I take the knife. I go in, I cut off the ring hand of Famine, and I meet you back here in the parking lot." Cas said, gesturing slightly with the Kurdish knife.

"Well, that sounds foolproof." Dean turned as Castiel disappeared. He waited a few moments, then grabbed his shotgun and opened the door. "This is taking too long."

"Dean, wait!" Marion whispered, slipping out the back. He turned to her, glaring slightly. "Okay, there's a Horseman in there. Demons, too. We need to take stock before we go rushin' in, guns blazing. Gods, I wish Fergus was here."

"Yeah, why don't you stay out here and miss the demon?"

"No, I mean... fuck! Fergus was affected, too, D., which means that this thing Famine's got is strong and it's way stronger based upon proximity. I just wanna call him... but it's gonna be really bad inside that building and, how are you so fuckin' calm right now?" She whispered, furiously.

"Cas is in there and he probably needs our help. Can you, maybe, focus on that instead of why I'm not freakin' out?"

"Sure. But I'm not wrong." She said, following him toward the building. They went in through the back, both cringing at a dead cook half in the fryer. They looked through the window where the food used to sit and saw Castiel hunched over.

"Cas!" Dean whispered, loudly. Marion gave Dean a look that said 'What the fuck?', as a group of demons rushed into the kitchen and grabbed them. They were pulled into the main restaurant and past Castiel, who was halfway through a Cambro of raw hamburger meat. "Cas!" The angel turned to look at the twins as they were dragged past him, but didn't move to help them.

"The other Mr. Winchester and the Wild Card." Famine, an old sickly-looking man in a powered wheelchair, said.

"What did you do to him?" Dean asked, looking back at Cas.

"You sicced your dog on me. I just threw him a steak." Famine wheezed out.

"So, this is your big trick? Huh? Making people cuckoo for cocoa puffs?"

"Doesn't take much. Hardly a push. Look at your sister. So deprived of security that she called on a demon just to make her feel the safety she used to feel, as a child. I barely did any work on her. Oh, America... all-you-can-eat, all the time. Consume, consume. A swarm of locusts in stretch pants. And yet, you're all still starving... because hunger doesn't just come from the body, it also come from the soul."

"It's funny. It doesn't seem to be coming from mine."

"Yes. I noticed that. Have you wondered why that is? How you could even walk in my presence?"

"Well, I like to think it's because of my strength of character."

"I disagree." The Horseman moved his chair forward and put his hand on Dean's chest. Dean cried out and Marion pulled against the demons holding her. "Yes. I see. That's one deep, dark _nothing_ you got there, Dean. Can't fill it, can you? Not with food or drink. Not even with sex."

"Oh, you're so full of crap." Dean responded.

"Oh, you can smirk and joke and lie to your sister and brother, lie to yourself, but not to me! I can see inside you, Dean. I can see how broken you are, how defeated. You can't win, and you know it. But you just keep fighting. Just... keep going through the motions. You're not hungry, Dean, because inside, you're already... dead."

Marion turned to her twin, trying to read his facial expression. She was mortified to see his eyes downcast. "Let them go." Sam's voice pulled everyone's attention to the front door.

"Sam." Famine said, reverentially, as he turned.

Marion looked away from the image of Sam's face covered in blood, but Dean cried, "Sammy, no!"

Two of the demons moved to attack Sam, but Famine barked, "Stop! No one lays a finger on this sweet little boy." and smirked. "Sam, I see you got the snack I sent you."

" _You_ sent?"

"Don't worry. You're not like everyone else. You'll never die from drinking too much. You're the exception that proves the rule. Just the way... _Satan_ wanted you to be. So..." Famine gestured at the demons around him. "...cut their throats. Have at them!"

"Sammy, no!" The twins shouted, as Sam seemed to contemplate the options, breathing heavily.

"Please, be my guest."

Sam closed his eyes and put his hand up. The twins pulled away from the guards, Dean grabbing the Kurdish knife from the floor next to Cas, and stared in shock as Sam pulled the smoke-forms out of each of the demons, letting them pool on the ground. "No." He defied as he dropped his hand.

"Well. Fine. If you don't want them... then I'll have them." Famine gasped loudly and sucked the demons into his mouth. Sam took several steps forward and raised his hand, trying to use his ability again. "I'm a Horseman, Sam. Your power doesn't work on me."

"You're right. But it will work on them." As Sam started to pull the demons out from Famine's stomach, his nose began to bleed from the exertion. The Horseman shouted as he exploded from the demons ripping him apart. "I had to." Sam defended as Marion bent down to pull the ring off of Famine's finger.

Dean turned to Cas, who moved away from the meat and was suddenly clean. "Can you take him to Bobby's?"

"No! Guys, I had to!" Sam shouted as Cas appeared next to him and they disappeared.

Marion sighed and twisted the ring between her fingertips. "You know, when I first got back from Hell, I couldn't think about anything except getting better. Getting stronger so that I could get back to hunting. Because I knew that hunting was the only way I could prove that... that I wasn't broken. I was, though. I am. I am broken, defeated." She turned to Dean. "But here I am. Fighting. Not because I'm going through the motions, Dean, but because I know it's the only way that I'm going to to prove that I'm still... worth a damn."

Dean looked down, but she placed the ring in the palm of his hand and closed it. "You know that I'm here, Dean. I'm here and I understand."

"I know, Mare." He nodded. "Thanks." He said, pushing the ring into the pocket of his jacket.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Sam was screaming in the panic room by the time the twins made it to Bobby's house. Cas stood next to the door and Dean leaned against a pillar, Marion sitting on a workbench across from him as he took a drink out of a bottle of bourbon. Castiel hung his head. "That's not him in there. Not really."

"I know." Dean responded.

"Dean, Sam just has to get it out of his system. Then he'll be-"

"Listen, I just, uh... I just need to get some air." Dean said, before walking away.

Castiel turned his attention to Marion, who leaned her head back against the wall behind her and looked above his head as Sam continued screaming for help. "How is Crowley?" The angel eventually asked, in an attempt to start a conversation with her.

"He's not liking living on the lam. He misses his house, but... apparently, Lucifer's demons burned that down, so..."

"Why are you not looking at me?"

Marion closed her eyes. "Because seeing your grace makes my skin crawl. What Lucifer did in Carthage-"

"Was not my fault."

"But if we hadn't slept together, he would never have been able to do that to me!"A tear rolled down her cheek and dropped to the back of her hand.

"He would have done worse. He would have made you bleed." Cas took a step closer to her. "You regret it?"

"Of course, I regret it. If I had stayed a... if we hadn't..." She took a deep breath and wiped at her cheeks, her eyes never opening. "I wish I could... I can handle pain, Castiel. If Lucifer had just made me bleed, I'd've been over it easily. But what he did..."

"He wanted to break you, so that you would be more likely to say 'yes'. Marion, this is all just a ploy to push us apart."

"Well, it's working." She said, sadly. "Lucifer's winning." There was silence for a minute and Marion risked opening her eyes. Castiel had disappeared, leaving an outline of grace next to the door to the panic room. "Lucifer's winning." She whispered, closing her eyes again.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"Lucifer's winning." repeated in her head over the next several days, especially after watching Bobby burn the body of his wife for a second time. They'd left, gone driving, gone drinking, gone ignoring the problems for as long as possible. She'd taken the sofa at the motel and drank herself into a deep sleep, which she was pulled out of by a voice saying, "Looking for this?" She sat up to find two masked men with shotguns trained on her and her brothers. Sam and Dean were both awake, as well. Sam looked wary, but Dean put on a bored facade.

"Mornin'."

"Shut up. Hands where I can see 'em."

Dean put his hands up, then sat up, examining the gunman closest to him. "Wait a minute. Is that you, Roy?" The gunman's eyes widened. "It is, isn't it?"

"Which makes you Walt." Marion said, gesturing slightly at the gunman closest to her and Sam.

"Hiya, Walt." Dean said, smirking.

Roy and Walt looked at each other for a minute before Walt lifted his mask. "Don't matter." Roy followed suit.

"Well, is it just me, or do you two seem a tad upset?" Dean asked.

"You think you can flip the switch on the Apocalypse and just walk away, Sam?" Walt accused.

"Who told you that?" Sam asked, a mix of guilt and anger flooding him.

"We ain't the only hunters after you." Walt pumped his shotgun. "See you in the next life."

"Hear me out." Sam started as Marion sat forward, warning, "This is a bad idea." "I can explain, okay? Please."

Marion expected the other hunters to give Sam a chance to explain. She would have. Dean and Bobby would have. But she screamed as the shotgun went off and Sam flew backward. Dean moved toward Sam's bed, but Roy reacted quickly. "Stay the hell down."

"Shoot 'im." Walt said, dropping his shotgun and pointing a pistol at Marion.

"Killin' Sam was right, but the twins..."

"He made us and we just snuffed their brother, you idiot. You wanna spend the rest of your life knowing Dean and Marion Winchester are on your ass, 'cause I don't. Shoot 'im." Walt cocked his pistol and fired a shot right into Marion's heart. She gasped as she fell backward, hand over the bullet hole in her chest.

"Go ahead, Roy, do it. Your brother put lead in my brother and sister, you better hold up your end. But I'm gonna warn you... when I come back, I'm gonna be pissed." Dean growled. "C'mon! Let's get this show on the road."

"Come on, already." Walt complained, before grabbing Roy's shotgun, cocking it and shooting Dean as Marion took her last stilted breaths.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Marion opened her eyes and found herself in Bobby's library. She smiled, reaching forward to grab an apple off of the desk. When she was young, Bobby always made sure to have fresh fruit in the house for her to eat. "Hey, Marion, don't ruin yer appetite with fruit. Waffles are almost done, girl!" Bobby called from the kitchen. Marion stood and walked into the kitchen, where Bobby was standing over a waffle iron, covered in waffle batter.

"This is... fuck, February of '92. The first time I spent more than a month away from Dad."

"Go ahead and get yourself some syrup outta the cupboard." Bobby said, pulling open the waffle iron.

"Gods, this is my favorite memory. Everything was so perfect..." She grabbed the syrup out of the cupboard and set it on the table. "...so perfect and simple. Simply happy." She shook her head. "This is not a dream, is it, Bobby?" She chuckled. "You know, Cas said that they'd let me into Heaven, but I wasn't-I wasn't sure."

"Don't be afraid to glob that on there, girl. They ain't waffles 'til they're covered." Bobby responded, sitting down at the table.

She sat down at the table next to him and popped the top off of the syrup, pouring it liberally over the waffles. "Well, if this is Heaven, then I am okay with this for the rest of eternity."

"Too bad, 'cause we gotta go." Dean's voice came from behind her. She turned.

"Dean? What... what are you doing in my Heaven?"

"I followed the road. Cas contacted me in _my_ Heaven and sent me down the road, said I'd find you and Sammy. Guess we all bit it."

Marion stood. "Okay. But... can't we stay a little while? This is-"

"No. We need to find Sam."

Marion sighed, then turned and took a bite of the waffles. She swallowed and followed Dean out into the salvage yard. "Those are the worst waffles I've ever had. But they were perfect."

"Yeah. Sorry I had to pull you away."

"Bigger things... I get it. What was your Heaven?"

"July 4th, 1996. Sammy and me, we had that big-ass box of fireworks. Burned down a field, almost started a wildfire."

"I was... 'sick' that night." She nodded, following him into the Impala. "Jerry Marx. Sold his soul to cure his daughter's cancer. I had to talk myself into branding him, because I knew he sold his soul for a good cause."

"Yeah, well, now we get to go see what Sammy thinks of Heaven." Dean said, starting the car and driving off.

They pulled in front of a two-story yellow house. It was the only thing on the road. The twins moved toward the house, cautiously. As they entered, they heard a young woman's voice. "Dad, shut up." then a thud, followed by Sam going 'Ummm'.

"Wow." The twins said, shaking their heads at him.

"Just wow." Dean finished.

"Guys? What are you doing in my dream?" Sam asked. The twins shot him a bitch face and turned away to the living room. Sam got up and followed them. "Seriously, what the hell?"

"This isn't a dream, Sam." Marion answered.

"We're in Heaven. Managed to piss off a couple other hunters."

The conversation in the kitchen continued without Sam's assistance. "Heaven?"

"Yep."

"Okay, how are _we_ in Heaven?"

"All that clean living, I guess." Dean responded.

Sam shook his head. "No, no. Okay. You... I get. Sure. But me and Marion? Maybe you haven't noticed, but we've done a few things?"

"Cas said I was golden. Good outweighed the bad, or something." Marion answered.

"And you _thought_ you were doing the right thing."

"Last I checked, it wasn't the road to _Heaven_ that was paved with good intentions."

"Yeah, well, if this is the Skymall, it sucks. I mean, where's the triplets and the latex, you know? C'mon, a guy has needs."

Sam turned and looked at the family in the dining room. "You know, when you bite the dust, they say your life flashes before your eyes."

"Your point?" Marion asked.

"This house, it's one of my memories."

"When I woke up, I woke up in one of _my_ memories. The Fourth of July we burned down that field?"

"And I was at Bobby's house, enjoying horrible waffles the way only a 13 year old can."

"Maybe that's what Heaven is: a place where you relive your greatest hits."

"Wait, so... playin' footsie with brace-face in there? Th-that's a trophy moment for you?" Dean asked, incredulously.

"Dean, I was 11 years old. This was my first real Thanksgiving."

"What are you talking about?" Dean asked.

"We had Thanksgiving every year."

"We had a bucket of extra-crispy and Dad passed out on the couch." Sam complained.

"Oh, come on. That's better than some folks." Marion shrugged as a rumbling noise started outside the house. They looked around.

"I don't remember this."

"Hey. We should, uh.." Dean said, as the lights went out and the house began to shake.

"Yeah, definitely." Sam responded as a searchlight shined through the window. They hid until the house stopped shaking and the lights came back on. "Okay, what the hell was that?"

"I don't know, but we are taking the escalator back downstairs." Dean ran to a radio and hit it. "Cas!"

"What are you doing?" Sam and Marion asked.

"What's it look like?"

"Like you've lost your mind." Sam answered.

"Cas talked to me before, using this phone-home radio thing, so I-Cas!"

"I can hear you." The TV flickered on behind them and they turned and rushed for the TV.

"Cas. Hey! So, I, uh, I found Sam and Mare, but, but something just happened. There was this weird beam of light."

"Don't go into the light." Cas instructed.

"Okay. Thanks, Carol Ann. What is it?"

"Not what, whom. Zachariah. He's searching for you."

"And if he finds us?" Sam asked.

"You can't say 'yes' to Michael and Lucifer if you're dead, so Zachariah needs to return you to your bodies."

"Awesome!" Marion exclaimed.

"Great! Problem solved." Sam smiled.

"No. You don't understand. You...hn... you're behind the Wall. This is a rare opportunity."

"For what?"

"You need to find an angel. His name is Joshua."

"Hey, man, no offense but we are kind of ass full of angels, okay? _You_ find him."

"I can't. I can't return to Heaven."

"So, what's so important about Joshua?" Marion asked.

"The rumor is, he talks to God."

"And so?" Dean snapped.

"You think maybe, just _maybe_ , we should find out what the Hell God has been saying?" Castiel snapped back.

"Jeez. Touchy."

"Please. I just need you to follow the road."

"What road?" Sam asked.

"It's called the Axis Mundi. It's a path that runs through Heaven. Different people see it as different things. For you, it's two-lane asphalt. The road will lead you to the Garden. You'll find Joshua there, and Joshua... can take us to God." Cas explained as the picture started to break up. "The Garden. Please. Hurry."

Sam turned to his siblings. "So... what do you guys think?"

"I think we hit the yellow bricks, find this Joshua cat."

"Really?" Sam and Marion exclaimed, surprised.

"What, you guys _don't_?"

"No, uh... I'm just surprised you _do_. Last time I checked you wanted to break God's nose, now you think He can help?" Sam asked.

"He's the only one who can. I mean, come on. We are royally boned. So prayer? The last hope of a desperate man."

They walked out of the house and stopped as they were faced with a thick forest. "Wasn't there a street out here?" Sam asked.

"There _was_." The twins answered, before everyone turned back around. Dean started to look around the house.

"Dean. What are you doing?"

"Looking for a road."

"You..." Dean opened the closet under the stairs, making Sam look on incredulously. "You think the road is in the closet?"

Dean turned the light on and turned to the others. "We're in Heaven, Sam, okay? I mean, our memories are coming true. Cas is on TV. Finding a road in a closet would be pretty much the most..." He turned, something catching his eye on the floor. "... normal thing to happen to us today."

"What?" Sam asked, as Dean picked up the little blue car.

"I used to have one of these... when we were kids. You remember?" Dean asked Marion as he set the slot car on the track and set it in motion.

Marion turned, suddenly somewhere else. Somewhere familiar. She gasped as she looked around. Two twin beds; one with a cowboy blanket, one with pink and flowers. Half a closet full of pink clothes and half with flannels and t-shirts with footballs and sports teams that a child wouldn't actually care about. Sam's clothes were back to normal, but Dean's were not, a light blue tee and flannel button-up. " _That_ was the road?"

"I guess. Pretty trippy, right?"

"Yeah. More trippy, um, apparently you 'wuv hugs'." Sam teased.

Dean looked down, then covered his teddy bear shirt. "Shut up." Dean looked around, but Marion was already on the other side of the room, picking up a book from her bookshelf. 'Grimm's Fairy Tales'. "Wait a minute. I know where we are."

"Where?" Sam asked.

"We're home." Marion said, dropping the book and picking up a doll.

"Marion! Dean!" The siblings turned to the door as it opened and Mary Winchester appeared. "You guys hungry?"

"Yeah. Starving." Marion answered, moving toward the door.

"Oh, _starving_ , huh? Well, then, somebody needs a pb&j, huh?" Mary responded.

"Strawberry jelly." Dean requested, following Mary and Marion out and down to the kitchen.

Marion and Dean sat at the table and Sam just watched as their mother made two sandwiches and brought them to the table on a cutting board. She poured them each a glass of milk. "You want the crust cut off?"

"Yeah. I'd love that." Dean responded, a smile on his face.

"Mom?" Sam piped up, sadly.

"I guess this is not your memory, Sam. Sorry."

"Not mine, either, really." Dean gave his twin a questioning look. "It was your slot car that got us here, and I'm not wearing a frilly pink... disgustingly girly dress." Dean nodded.

"Dean, uh, we should... go. Keep looking for the road." Sam suggested.

"Just... just give me a minute, okay?"

"Dean..."

"Sam. Please. One minute." Dean almost begged. Sam nodded as Mary ruffled Dean's hair and moved to put the knife in the sink. The phone rang and Mary answered it.

"Hello?... No, John..." Everyone turned to look at the woman. "We're not having this conversation again... Time to think?! About what?... You've got three kids at home."

"I remember this. Mom and Dad were fighting." Dean started.

"And he moved out for a couple days." Marion finished.

"Dad always said they had the perfect marriage."

"It wasn't perfect until _after_ he died." Dean responded.

"Fine. Then don't... There's nothing more to talk about." Mary hissed at the phone, before hanging up and turning away from the twins. They could tell she was fighting back tears.

"What happens next?" Sam asked.

Dean stood and walked over to her, wrapping her in a hug. Marion picked up a half of her sandwich and followed. "It's okay, Mom. Dad still loves you. I love you, too. I'll never leave you."

"Have some of my sandwich, Mommy. Your sandwiches always make me feel better." Marion offered.

Mary pulled back and put a hand on each twin's cheek. "You are my little angels. How 'bout some pie, instead? Okay." As Mary moved away to get the pie, the twins moved to the doorway where Sam was waiting. He shook his head, slightly.

"What?" Dean demanded.

"I just never realized how long you two have been cleaning up Dad's messes."

"Whatever. Let's keep moving." Dean moved to check the cupboards and drawers. Marion grabbed a book from the bookshelf in the living room, which had a motorcycle on a winding road on it. Marion scoffed as their childhood home turned into a restaurant, almost completely empty, except a waiter, putting a cake on a round booth table. The motorcycle from the book was a framed photo over the booth. "Whose is this?" Dean asked, but as soon as he turned to Marion and saw her in a Green Day shirt with black jeans and a chain wallet he knew the answer.

"Mine." She said, as the waiter cut her a slice from the cake. She looked to her brothers. "It's our fifteenth birthday. Dad forgot. He was on a hunt, dropped us off and bounced. Sammy had saved just enough quarters to take you to this massive arcade in town for a few hours. I stayed behind, said I had homework, but as soon as I was alone Fergus showed up. He brought me to this restaurant and paid for a cake and my dinner... and then he got called to a crossroads... still spent my birthday alone."

"This is a _good_ memory?" The boys asked, their eyebrows tucked down a similar fashion.

She swiped her finger across the frosting on the cake, wiping out the word 'Happy' and popping it into her mouth. "It was the first time I had a real birthday cake since Mom died. I ate the whole thing in one sitting. Felt bad after 'cause I should have saved some for you, but..." She shrugged. "It was really good cake."

"Okay. Seriously, your Heaven is bumming me out worse than Dean's."

Marion looked down. "I haven't had a lot of happy, guys. You should have expected that."

"Yeah, but do you have _any_ actual happy?" Dean asked.

"Yeah. But that's not important. There's a road outside." She said, heading for the door of the restaurant. She had to get gone before 'memory-Crowley' showed up to playfully scold her for eating the whole cake without him singing 'Happy Birthday'.

"I've seen this somewhere before." Sam said, looking at a postcard that said 'Route 66', pinned to a board next to the hostess stand.

"Where?" Dean asked, as the restaurant became a trailer, the postcard pinned to the wall along with dozens of others. "Where are we?"

"No way." Sam smiled, looking around, smirking. He bent down as a golden retriever bounded into the room. "Bones! Hey, c'mere! C'mere!" The twins looked on as the dog licked Sam's face. "Hey, hey, hey, hey..."

"Bones?" Dean asked.

"Yeah. Bones was my dog. Hey." Sam moved to a coffee table and opened up a pizza box.

"Your... your dog?"

"Yeah."

"When did you have a dog?" Marion asked, looking around, as Dean did the same and Sam fed the dog pizza.

"Is this Flagstaff?" Dean asked.

"Yeah." Sam answered, happily. "Hey, boy."

"This is a good memory for you?" Dean growled.

"Yeah. I mean, I was on my own for two weeks." Sam laughed. "I lived on Funyuns and Mr. Pibb."

"Wow." The twins chorused.

"What?"

"Well, you don't remember, do you?" Dean asked.

"You ran away on _our_ watch. We looked for you everywhere."

"We thought you were _dead_."

"And when Dad came home..." Marion shook her head. "It's the only time after I kissed my life away that I thought he might actually kill me. I think the only reason he didn't was because he blamed it more on D."

Sam looked guilty as the twins turned toward the door. "Look, I'm sorry. I-I never thought about it like that."

"Forget it. Let's roll." Dean moved toward the trailer door, Marion following behind. Sam petted the dog once more, then followed out.

Out the door didn't put them on a road, but into a bar. Marion gasped as she recognized the bar. This was a recent memory. "Fuck." She whispered. "Find the road!" She demanded.

Dean looked directly at Marion as she began frantically searching the bar for a road. "What is this?"

She sighed, turning to him as Gabriel appeared on the second stool. "This is where Gabriel stuffed me while you guys were playing in sitcom Hell. In a couple minutes, this will turn into the bedroom of my dreams and then, Cas'll be here. So, unless you guys wanna see Cas and me lose our virginities, you'll help me find an out!"

They stared at her in shock for a minute as Gabriel said, "Okay. I get it. You're mad at me."

"You... why didn't you say?" Dean asked, as Gabriel kept up his side of the conversation.

"Maybe because it was private?!"

"I told you when I lost mine." Dean argued as Castiel appeared and the scene changed, as did Marion's clothes.

"Dammit! Let's talk about this later! Someone find the road!" Dean started chuckling as he opened the window and climbed out onto a blacktop road at night. Marion and Sam followed and Marion sighed in relief to see her clothes changed back. "Okay, so... Cas and I, that was a one-time thing. It only happened because neither of us had anything else going on. We were literally stuck there and Gabriel turned it into... this romantic... he thought I'd be more agreeable if I were less tense. I wasn't. Let's move on."

"Okay, but we're gonna have to talk about this. Cas is-" Dean started.

"Yeah, okay. Joshua is more important, right now." She dismissed, looking at an old shack with a screen door and a porch.

"What memory is this?" Dean asked.

"Not mine." Marion answered.

"No idea." Sam sniffed. "All right, come on." The twins looked at each other, catching on. "Guys... Road. God. Remember?"

"Wait a minute. Wait a minute. This?" Dean turned to him, but Marion just kept looking at the shack. "This is the night you ditched us for Stanford, isn't it? This is your idea of Heaven? Wow." He laughed, full of emotional pain. "This was one of the worst nights of my life."

"I can't control this stuff." Sam defended.

"Seriously? I mean, this is a happy memory for you?"

"I don't know. I mean, I was on my own. I finally got away from Dad."

"Yeah, he wasn't the only one you got away from." Marion said, sadly.

"Guys, I'm sorry. I just, uh..."

"I know. You didn't-you didn't think of it like that." Dean snapped back.

"Dean!"

"C'mon! Your Heaven is somebody else's Thanksgiving. Okay? It's bailing on your family. What do you want me to say?"

"Man, I never got the crusts cut off my PB&J. I just don't look at family the way you do."

"Yeah, but _we're_ your family." Marion whined.

"I know..."

"Sam, we're supposed to be a team. It's supposed to be us against the world, right?" Dean asked.

"Dean, it is!"

"Is it, though?" The twins asked, in a whisper.

Sam looked destroyed for a moment before the spotlight hit them. They looked up and then took off running into the woods surrounding the shack. "Go!"

As they ran, a voice hit their ears. "Wow. Running from angels. On foot. In Heaven." Zachariah taunted. "With out-of-the-box thinking like that, I'm surprised you boys haven't stopped the Apocalypse already." It was suddenly daytime in the forest. "Guys! What's the problem? I just want to send you back to Earth, that's all. I mean, that is, after I tear you a cosmos of new ones. You're on my turf now, kids. And by the time I'm through with you, you're gonna be begging to say 'yes'."

The Winchesters took off running but stopped when Zachariah appeared in front of them. "Guys, come on. You can run, but you can't run."

They turned and ran back in the opposite direction, but they stopped when a man in a luchadore mask and a gold cape appeared. He motioned for them to be quiet, then waved them forward. "Hurry! This way." He turned and ran toward a small wooden shack. He drew a sigil on the door in chalk, then opened it and ran inside, the Winchesters following.

"Wait. Who are you?" Sam demanded as they walked into another bar. The man pulled off the mask and cape.

"Buenos dias, bitches." The mulleted man said.

"Ash?" Dean exclaimed.

The man clapped his hands together and the lights came up and music started on the jukebox. "Welcome to my blue Heaven."

"Good God, the Roadhouse. It even _smells_ the same." Dean marveled.

"Bud, blood and beer nuts. The best smell in the world." Ash said, walking behind the bar. "How 'bout a cold one? Up here, no hangover." Ash placed three beers on the bar.

"So, this is the Roadhouse?" Marion asked, looking around. "I've heard stories. And you must be Ash, for whom the 'M' in MIT stands for 'mullet'."

"And you're the elusive Marion Winchester. I've heard good things."

"Yeah?"

"Oh, yeah." Ash winked at her. "And not just about your vessel status."

"So... no offense..." Sam started.

"How did a dirtbag like me end up in a place like this?" Ash interrupted. "I've been saved, man. I was my congregation's number one snake handler."

"And you said this was _your_ Heaven?" Sam smiled.

"Yup! My own... personal..." Ash said, shotgunning his beer and then burping.

"And when the angels jumped us, we were..." Marion started, opening her beer.

"In _your_ Heaven."

"So, there're two Heavens?" Sam asked.

"No, more like a hundred billion. So, no worries, it'll take those angel boys a minute to catch up." Ash said.

"What?" Dean demanded.

"See, ya gotta stop thinkin' of Heaven as _one_ place. It's more like a _buttload_ of places, all crammed together. Like Disneyland, except without all the antisemitism."

"Disneyland?" Sam asked.

"Mm-hmm. Yeah. See, you got Winchesterland. Ashland." He gestured at the bar, then pointed outside. "A whole mess of Everybody-else-lands. Put them all together: Heaven. Right? At the center of it all, is the Magic Kingdom: The Garden."

"So, everybody gets a little slice of Paradise." Dean concluded.

"Pretty much. A few people share. Special cases, whatnot."

"What do you mean, 'special'?" Dean and Marion asked.

"Ah, you know. Like, uh, soulmates, _some_ twins." There was a moment of silence. "Anyway. Most people can't leave their own private Idahos."

"But you ain't most people." Marion chuckled.

"Nope. They ain't got my skills. Hell, I've been all over. Johnny Cash. Andre the Giant. Einstein." Ash turned to Sam. "Sam, that man can mix a White Russian. Hell, the other day? I found Mallanāga Vātsyāyana."

"Who?" Sam asked.

"He wrote the Kama Sutra." Marion answered.

"Huh, that boy's Heaven? Uh, sweaty, confusing." Ash answered.

"All this from a guy who used to sleep on a pool table." Dean chuckled.

"Yeah. Now that I'm dead, I'm living, man, a whole lot more."

"So, how'd you find us?" Sam asked.

"I rigged up my very own holy-rollin' police scanner." Ash pulled a laptop out from under the bar and powered it up. Marion flinched as the sound hit her.

_We've lost the Winchesters... again._

_Whose Heaven are they in?_

_Where are-_

Marion covered her ears and Ash shut the laptop. "That's angels. Babblin' in Enochian, okay? I'm fluent."

"Mare, too." Dean said, patting her back.

"Anyway, I heard that you were up. Of course, I had to come find you. _Again_."

"Again?" Marion asked, surprised.

"Oh, this isn't their first time here. I mean, these boys die more than anyone I've ever met."

"Really?"

"Ah, yeah. You don't remember. God! Angels... must've Windexed your brain."

"So, uh, I mean, have you found anybody else? Ellen and Jo?" Sam asked.

"Ellen and Jo are dead?" Ash asked, shocked, focusing on Dean.

Dean looked away, sadly, so Ash looked to Sam. "Uh, yeah. Yeah. A few months now. Sorry."

Ash took a minute to compose himself. "Um... Uh, they went down fighting?"

Sam nodded. "Yeah. To the end."

"Yeah, a lot of good it did." Dean snapped, bitterly. "How 'bout our folks?"

"I've been looking all over for John Winchester, Mary, too, but so far: nada. I'm sorry. But hey! There _is_ somebody that I know, for sure, wants to jaw with you. Hold up." Ash turned and went through a door behind him, coming back with Pamela Barnes.

"Pam!" Marion shouted, jumping up.

"Pamela!" Sam smiled, surprised.

"Nice to see you again." She said, smiling.

Marion rushed around the bar, hugging the psychic. "I'm so glad you're here! I thought, maybe, 'cause o' how much you liked the guys, you might have gone down." She joked.

"I will never apologize for how much I love the men. You, though..." Pamela stepped back and looked into Marion's eyes. "An angel, huh? That's somethin' special." Marion blushed, deeply. " _And_ a demon?" Marion pulled away from the psychic and tried to laugh it off as she walked away toward the tables.

Dean and Pam followed her, sitting at one of the tables. "So!" Dean started, directed at Pam.

"So." Pam responded, reaching over to swat him on the head. "That's for getting me killed."

"Yeah, that's... probably less than I deserve. Makes you feel any better, we got Ash killed, too."

"I'm cool with it." Ash stuck up a rock salute, and snapped his fingers.

"He's cool with it."

"I had nothing to do with either death. Just... sayin'." Marion spoke up.

"So you, you good?" Dean asked.

"I'm good. Really." Pam smiled. "Remember my death scene? Gut shot. Coughing blood. You told me I was going someplace better."

"I was lying."

"You were right! My Heaven? It is one long show at the Meadowlands. It's amazing! You should see it."

Dean nodded. "Yeah."

"You don't believe me."

"No, I do, it's just... You know, spending eternity trapped in your own little universe while the angels run the show, that's lonely, you know. That's not nirvana. That's the Matrix."

"I dunno. Attic's still better than the basement." Pam turned to Marion. "Isn't it?"

"Yeah, but it's not real." Marion whispered.

"Yeah, you know this place feels real, but it's Memorex. Real is down there." Dean provided.

"Yeah, well, close enough. Look, guys, I'm happy. I'm at peace."

"What, are you trying to sell us a timeshare? I mean, what's with the pitch?" Dean's eyebrows tucked together.

Pam chuckled. "I know that Michael wants to take one of you out for a test drive."

"Pamela..."

"Just sayin'. What happens if you play ball with them? Worst case."

"A lot of people die." Marion answered.

"And then they come here. Is that really so bad? Look. Maybe... you don't have to fight it so hard, that's all I'm trying to say."

Dean opened his mouth to respond, but Sam turned and shouted, "Hey! Found a short cut to the Garden."

Ash threw a rock-on, which Pam returned and Dean dropped down to go talk to Ash about the shortcut. "That speech wasn't just for Dean, you know?" Pam whispered.

"I know. But... we promised, Pam."

"You promised to let the Devil win?"

"You know that's not..."

"He's winning. You know he is. You _know_ I know _you_ know he is."

"That doesn't..."

"You could end this, Marion. Right now, you could end this."

Marion shook her head. "No. We promised to keep each other strong. If one of us fails, we all fail."

Pam smiled as she patted Marion's hand. "You should give that angel another shot. He's a sweetheart and he's _not_ Lucifer."

Marion sighed and dropped down from the stool, heading for the side door, where Ash was drawing with chalk. "That Zach fella's gonna be watching every road to the Garden."

"Watch your ass." Pam said, hugging Sam. "And Dean." She pulled away and Dean went for a hug, but Pam pulled him in for two good kisses. "Yep. Just how I imagined." She chuckled as she patted his cheek.

"Ah, gentlemen. I don't mean to be a downer or anything, but... I'm sure I'll see you again soon." Ash said, standing. "And it was great meeting you, Ms. Winchester. Hope it's a first and last."

"Yeah, I tend to stay alive... for much longer than I should." She responded.

"Well, keep a sixer on ice for us." Dean said, and Ash nodded.

Marion took a deep breath as Ash opened the door and they all stepped through... into the house in Lawrence. "What the- Why are we back home?" Dean asked.

"I don't know." Sam responded, looking around.

"So, what are we going to do?" Marion asked.

"Keep looking for the road again, I guess." Dean answered.

Their mother showed up behind them, in the kitchen. "Honey. Why are you up?"

"Look. I'm-I'm sorry. I love you, but you're not real and we don't have time-" Dean started.

"Did you have another nightmare? Tell me."

"I gotta go." Dean started walking away.

"Then how 'bout I tell you _my_ nightmare, Dean? The night I burned."

The twins gasped slightly as blood appeared on her nightgown on her stomach. "Fuck, let's get out of here."

"Don't you walk away from me." Mary ordered. "I never loved you. You two were my burden. I was shackled to you. Look what it got me." She blinked and her eyes turned sickly yellow.

"Dean." Marion hissed. Dean turned to Sam and Marion, his expression devastated. The lights suddenly flicked to an ugly green color, and all exits disappeared, bricked up instantly.

"The worst was the smell. The pain, well, what can you say about your skin bubbling off? But the smell was so... You know, for a second I thought I'd left a pot roast burning in the oven. But... it was _my_ meat." Marion stepped protectively between Dean, who ran to see how bricked over the entrance really was, and their mother, who just kept talking. "And then, finally, I was dead. The one silver lining was that at least I was away from _you_ . Everybody leaves you, Dean. You noticed? Mommy. Daddy. Even Sam. The only one who couldn't stomach leaving you behind... you drove her into the arms of a demon!" Mary chuckled. "You ever ask yourself why? Maybe it's not them. Maybe, it's _you_."

"Easy now, kitten." Zachariah said, walking in behind Mary.

"You did this!" Sam accused.

"And I'm just getting started. I mean, guys, did you really think you could just sneak past me into Mission Control?"

"Oh, bite me!" Marion exclaimed.

"You are expendable!" Zachariah shouted, and suddenly, Marion was alone, lying on a couch.

She sat up and looked around, a dark motel room greeting her vision. She didn't have to wonder where she was. The scene she was in still played in her nightmares. Zachariah had thrown her back into the memory of August 19, 1991. She gasped as the bourbon bottle smashed into her right hip.

As Marion looked up at her father, the smell of whiskey rolling off of him, she couldn't help but think of her silence in the actual moment. How she'd kept herself from crying out, how she'd held her tongue from ever confronting John about the abuse. As John pulled his belt from his belt loops, a tear escaped her eye. "I forgive you." She whispered.

"What'd you say?" John asked.

"I said, 'I forgive you', Daddy." She sat up and stepped forward. "I forgive you for letting the pain ruin you. I forgive you for the neglect. I forgive you for putting so much pressure on me and Dean, never letting us be kids. I forgive you for making me your punching bag. I forgive you for every bruise and broken bone. I forgive you, Dad." She put her hand over his. "I think you probably thought I hated you, but I never did. I always understood why. I just never got to tell you that I did and I forgave you." She grabbed his belt from his hand and threw it across the room. "But I'm not a little girl, anymore, and I'm not going along with this memory just because Zachariah wants me to. You've already changed it from the original and I can keep on changing it."

John's face softened, the smell of whiskey disappearing. "Oh, Pony. I'm so sorry."

"I know. I know, Dad. I should have told you all of this when I saw you in Hell. Before it was too late."

John wrapped her in a hug and her tears wet his green button-up. "I _did_ think you hated me, because how could you still love me after everything I did?"

"How could I _not_? You're my daddy." Marion looked over his shoulder as an angel appeared. "I've gotta go." She pulled back, looking up into John's eyes. "I love you... always." She smiled and pulled away.

"This exercise doesn't seem to have gone the way Zachariah intended." The angel, in the vessel of an older, bearded black man, commented.

She chuckled as she wiped at her tears. "I think he forgot that I'm not like my brothers. Are you... Joshua?" She asked as John disappeared and the motel room became a botanical garden. "The Garden. Oh, you are definitely Joshua. It's a pleasure. Do you know where my brothers are? Are they okay?"

"I'll retrieve them next." He disappeared for a minute, then reappeared, Sam and Dean with him.

" _This_ is Heaven's Garden?" Sam asked, as they stepped down a few stone steps toward Marion and Joshua.

"It-it's nice... ish, I guess." Dean responded.

"You see what you _want_ to here. For some, it's God's throne room. For others, it's Eden. You three, I believe it's the Cleveland Botanical Gardens. You came here on a field trip." Joshua answered as the boys came to a stop in front of him and Marion.

Sam nodded, remembering. "You're Joshua."

The angel nodded. "I'm Joshua."

"So, you talk to God."

"Mostly, _He_ talks to _me_."

"Well, we need to speak to Him. It's important." Marion said.

"Where is He?" Dean demanded.

"On Earth."

"Doing what?" Dean asked.

"I don't know."

"Do you know where on Earth?" Sam asked.

"No, sorry. We don't exactly speak face-to-face."

"I'm sorry...I-I don't get it. God's not talkin' to nobody so..."

"Why's He talking to _me_? I, sometimes, think it's because I can sympathize- gardener to gardener- and, between us, I think He gets lonely."

"Well, my heart's breaking for him." Dean said, snide disgust on his face.

"Well, can you at least get Him a message for us?" Sam bargained.

"Actually, He has a message for _you_. 'Back off'."

"What?" The twins exclaimed.

"He knows already. Everything you want to tell Him."

"Of course, He does, but..." Marion interjected, her face falling.

"He knows what the angels are doing. He knows that the Apocalypse has begun. He just doesn't think it's His problem."

"Not his problem?" Dean asked, shocked.

The angel was suddenly intense. "God saved you already. He put you on that plane. He brought back Castiel. He granted you salvation in Heaven..." Joshua turned to Sam and Marion. "...and after everything you've done, too. It's more than He's intervened in a long time. He's finished. Magic amulet or not, you won't be able to find Him."

"But He can stop it. He can stop _all_ of it." Dean's voice was full of pain.

"I suppose He could, but He won't."

"Why not?"

"Why does he allow evil in the first place? You could drive yourself nuts asking questions like that." Joshua responded.

"So, he's just going to sit back and watch the world burn?" Dean asked.

"I know how important this was to you, Dean. I'm sorry."

"Well, forget it." Dean said, tears pricking at the corner of his eyes. "Just another deadbeat dad with a bunch of excuses, right? Nah, I'm used to that. I'll muddle through."

"Except... you don't know if you can, this time." Joshua examined Dean's face. "You can't kill the Devil, and you're losing faith... in yourself, your brother, and now this? God was your last hope. I just... I wish I could tell you something different."

"How do we know you're telling the truth?" Sam asked, concerned for the failure on Dean's face.

"You think I would lie?" Joshua sounded a little offended at the notion.

"It's just that..." Sam started, but Marion interrupted him.

"Almost every other angel we've dealt with has been a manipulative, horrible dickwad."

"I'm rooting for you kids! I wish I could do more to help you, I do! But... I just trim the hedges."

"So, what now?" Dean asked.

"You go home again. I'm afraid, this time won't be like the last. This time, God wants you to remember." Joshua said, lifting his hand and sending them back in a flash of white light.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Marion gasped, loudly as she sat up, hand going to her chest where the bullet wound used to be. Sam sat up, followed by Dean, both gasping and panting. "You all right?" Sam asked, looking between the twins.

"Define 'All right'." Dean growled, reaching over to grab his phone. Marion reached down to grab a new shirt out of the duffel at her feet as Dean dialed. "We're back, Cas. Yeah... uh, the news ain't good. AAA+ Motel off o' I-40." Dean turned to Marion as she wiped blood off of her chest. "Hey, next time we got guns in our faces, that'd be the prime time to use your stopwatch powers."

"I wasn't expecting them to actually shoot us, Dean. What kind of hunter mows down another family of hunters?"

Marion was pulling a clean black tank top over her head when the sound of wings displacing the air hit her ears. Castiel was staring at her when she pulled the shirt all the way down. "How did it go?"

"Well, I'm not a fan of dying, but... Heaven wasn't so bad." Marion answered, crossing her arms over her chest. "I mean, until Zachariah found us, turned Mom evil, sent me into the worst memory of my life... and then Joshua..."

"God's a bastard." Dean growled.

"Dean." Castiel's voice was full of warning.

"No, Cas... Joshua said... God's not gonna help." Marion whispered.

"Josh said God doesn't see how it's His problem. He's already helped us more than he's helped anybody in thousands of years and we're on our own." Dean filled in as he packed his duffel. "We're never gonna find Him because He doesn't want to be found and He'll stay out of it."

Castiel turned away, a hopelessness taking over his features. "Maybe... maybe Joshua was lying."

"I don't think he was, Cas. I'm sorry." Sam said, sighing.

Cas moved toward the doorway and looked up to the ceiling. "You son of a bitch. I believed in..." Cas trailed off, looking at the ceiling for some sort of sign. When none came, he turned back around, pulling Dean's necklace from his pocket and tossing it at Dean. "I don't need this, anymore. It's worthless." He turned away and Sam, seeing the lost look in the angel's eyes, stepped forward.

"Cas, wait." Sam started, but Castiel had disappeared. Marion sighed, rubbing her palms across her eyes. They were all low and Sam was trying to be the hope of the group. "We'll find another way. We can still stop all this, guys."

"How?" Dean asked, tiredly.

"I don't know, but we'll find it. You and Marion and me, we'll find it." Sam looked to Marion for support, who sighed heavily and grabbed her bag.

Despite the news about God, she'd gotten closure with John, and she'd gotten to see their Mom, so she was feeling a bit better. "Dean, if anyone were able to pull this off... it's us. Team Free Will, remember?" Sam nodded and gave a small smile at his sister, but Dean didn't look impressed as he picked up his bag and walked past them without a word or a look at his siblings. He stopped at the door and dropped the necklace into the trash, before walking out. The other two looked at each other, before walking out, too, Marion stopping at the trashcan to pull the amulet out of the trashcan. "He'll regret it." She whispered to Sam as she shoved it into her jacket pocket. Sam nodded, putting his arm around her shoulders as they walked to the Impala.


	30. Wildcard

The people in Blue Earth wouldn't let Marion room with her brothers. They didn't like the idea of a woman rooming with two men, even if they were her brothers, so she was able to sit in a bath and contemplate what it was about Leah that made her feel uneasy. She didn't look like Chuck, that was part of it. Chuck looked like an average human, but Leah, she had an aura of white. And her smile was just unnerving. Marion shrugged it off as she exited the bath, drying off before slipping on a pair of comfortable shorts and a light blue tank top. She entered her room to see Castiel sitting on her bed, head hanging. "My father abandoned me, just like yours. How do you deal-" Marion stepped toward the man. Her bed was covered in empty liquor bottles.

"Cas?"

"How do you reconcile such deep anger and betrayal against love and loyalty you've always held?"

Marion put her hand on his shoulder. His grace was pulling toward her, demanding comfort from her, but his head was still hanging. "The love and loyalty are default. We love our fathers because they gave us life. The anger, well, that's like fire. It only burns as long as you keep feeding it." She sat next to him and scooted closer, ignoring her discomfort at his grace drunkenly whipping at her as she pulled a bottle of 151 rum out of his hand and interlaced his fingers with her own. "The betrayal is a wound, and even after it heals, you'll still have a scar."

"I don't scar. I'm an angel."

"It's a metaphor, angel." She closed her eyes and just leaned her head against his shoulder. Without being able to see the grace, she was able to enjoy the feeling of Castiel's very essence caressing her skin. "God saved you, Cas. He saw that Zachariah and the others set us up to fail and He rewarded your sacrifice by bringing you back. I can understand it, you know, Him wanting us to clean up our own messes. He's already saved us from so much."

"I'm very sad, Marion. But... at least you're not flinching away from me, tonight."

Marion clenched her eyes tighter. "I'm so sorry, Cas. I know it wasn't your fault, what Lucifer did."

"You should have allowed me to help you, instead of running off to Crowley's arms." The anger in that sentence made Marion's eyes snap open. His grace had flared up, filling the space in the room, but it didn't scare her for some reason. 

"I didn't run off to Crowley's arms, Cas. I ran off to drink myself to death. Crowley  _found_  me... and I was so much worse off than you are right now. He helped me. I said terrible things to him... and he helped me, anyway."

"And that's why... when Famine..."

"No. I... I figured that out, Cas. I was chasing a memory; a feeling that I missed from my youth. It wasn't... sexual, and it wasn't love, not conventionally, anyway. It was this feeling of... safety, of being with someone who would protect me."

"And  _I_  couldn't." He said, sadly.

"Neither could  _he_! Azazel took me to Hell, right in front of him... Crowley was 2 feet away from me and he did  _nothing_. But when I was little..." She shook her head, trying to pull her hand away from his, but failing. "Safety is an illusion. I get that now, but when I was little... I never felt any danger when I was with Fergus. We would sit together, on park benches, or laid out like we were having a picnic and I would... I would  _feel_ safe. Even knowing everything that was out there, knowing about demons and how Mom died, knowing what Dad hunted when he was gone... sitting with Fergus, I felt safe and I miss that feeling. I didn't realize how much I've been missing it until Famine got me. But it's not the only thing I've been missing, Cas. It's just the thing Famine got me with."

"Marion, I... I miss you. I want you. I've been... craving you and hoping that you were going to move past what happened in Carthage." Castiel pulled her closer to him. And Marion let him. Part of her thought she was taking advantage of him as she let him nuzzle into her neck and put a hand on her bare thigh. He was drunk. For the first time in his existence, Castiel was drunk, and it  _was_  taking advantage to allow him to continue kissing her neck and pushing his fingertips under the hem of her shorts.

"Cas, I-" She gasped as he scraped his teeth across her shoulder. "Y-you're drunk. You can't-"

"Shut up." Cas growled into her ear as he pulled her into his lap, her legs spread wide as she straddled him. "I'm an angel. A little bit of alcohol isn't going to affect me negatively."

"Cas..." She trailed off as he pulled her tank top down and started leaving biting kisses across her breasts. He dropped his hands to her hips, grasping hard at them as he sucked a nipple into his mouth and worried it between his teeth. "Fuck."

"Yes." The angel said, simply, as his left hand snaked up the leg of her shorts and he started to rub at her clit through her cotton panties with his thumb. She bit her lip and moaned low in her throat as she grinded against his hand. His right hand buried in her hair, tugging just enough to hurt a bit as he pulled her close for a kiss. She could taste whiskey and rum in his mouth and she ran her tongue across his, intrigued by the flavors in his usually flavorless mouth. He twisted them, suddenly, tossing Marion on her back and covering her body with his. He looked down at her, glazed blue eyes piercing her lust-blown green ones. "Don't push me away, anymore. I don't deserve it."

"And I don't deserve you." The words were said on instinct, but she knew they were true as soon as she said them.

"You don't know  _what_  you deserve, and what does deserving have to do with love?" The angel asked, leaning away from her to pull his coat off. As the trenchcoat hit the floor next to the bed, the rest of their clothes disappeared. He leaned down and captured her mouth again, pressing against her. She grabbed his head, deepening the kiss as her legs wrapped around his waist. "You deserve to be happy. And I deserve to be with you. I deserve your serenity, and the way your skin tastes. I deserve to make you make the sounds I enjoy so much. Those things... they make me happy." He kissed her neck and she gasped.

"After all I've lost, given up,  _sacrificed_  since my return to Earth, don't I deserve to have what makes me happy?" He asked into her hairline as her fingertips caressed his scalp. He kissed down her shoulder as she reached her hand between them and wrapped her fingers around his length. He hissed and bucked into her hand. "You are worth everything lost." He whispered, kissing at the crook of her neck.

The next few moments seemed to drag on forever and run way too fast as they came together and the room filled with sounds of their moans and grunts and skin against skin. He was rougher this time around, the alcohol putting an edge to every move he made and it made her enjoy it more. When they dropped to the bed, she was panting, but Castiel was just smiling. "This was... really not bad. I'm sorry I took so long to-"

"Don't worry about it, Marion." Cas sighed as his phone went off in his trenchcoat pocket. "Sam keeps calling me."

"Uh, there's something weird here in Blue Earth."

"Why else would you and your brothers be here?" Castiel sat up, suddenly dressed with the bottle of 151 in his hand again. "Thank you, Marion. I'll... answer Sam's call now." He said, before disappearing.

Her brothers seemed to alternate between thinking Cas' inebriation was funny and worrisome, but neither of them seemed to notice the makeup covering the hickeys and bite marks on Marion's neck, as they moved to take down The Whore. 

When Dean took off, after killing the monster pretending to be Leah Gideon, Sam knew where to find him, explaining about the yoga instructor and her son in Cicero, Indiana. "He's gonna be saying 'Goodbye'."

"He can't say 'yes'!" Marion exclaimed, breaking into an older model Dodge truck and shoving her knife into the ignition, breaking the locking pins. Sam climbed into the passenger seat as she slammed the door and pointed the car East. They found him at Mike's Travel Inn in Cicero. They walked into his room to find him writing on a cardboard box.

"Sending someone a candygram?" Sam asked.

Dean turned to them, glass of Johnny Walker Black in his hand. "How'd you find me?"

"You're going to kill yourself, right? It's not too hard to figure out the stops on the Farewell Tour. How's Lisa doing, anyways?" Sam responded, twirling the room key they'd stolen from the front desk in his hands.

"I'm not going to kill myself."

"No? So, Michael's  _not_  about to make you his Muppet?" Marion snapped as Dean drank from his glass. "What the Hell, D.? This is how it ends? You just... walk out?"

"Yeah, I guess."

"How could you do that?" Sam asked, hurt.

"How could  _I_? All you've  _ever_  done is run away." Dean spat back.

"And I was wrong. Every single time I did. Just... please. Not now. Bobby is working on something." Sam begged.

"Oh, really? What?" Sam and Marion looked down. "You got nothing and you know it."

"You know we have to stop you." Marion said, biting her lip.

Dean set his glass on the top of the box on the bed and sniffed. "Yeah, well, you can try, Sam. Just remember, You're not all hopped up on demon blood this time... and Mare's never been able to bring herself to really hurt me."

"Yeah, I know. But we brought help." Sam looked behind Dean, who turned around to see Castiel standing behind him. Cas touched two fingers to his forehead and Dean passed out. The angel picked him up and disappeared. Marion grabbed the box off the bed and stomped out into the parking lot. Sam followed her. "Mare, are you okay?"

"No!" She dropped the box on the trunk and turned to him. "I didn't think he was really- Fuck, Sam, he was really gonna do it!"

"Yeah, well, we stopped him. It's fine." 

"Is it? No. No, it's not. Taking him to Bobby's isn't gonna take away his desire to-"

"Mare, let's just... Take this one at a time, okay?"

"It's like he doesn't understand that if he fails, we all fail!" She said, ripping open the box to pull the Impala keys out. "Come on. Let's go!" She growled, climbing into the driver's side of the Chevy.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Marion glared at Dean as he paced back and forth in the library at Bobby's. He'd been giving them grief for hours, disparaging their attempts to find something,  _anything_ , to go on. He'd said Bobby wasn't his father and growled that Bobby wasn't in his shoes, made Bobby admit that he thought about killing himself every morning. But Marion was in Dean's shoes. And Marion took a moment of silence where Dean was grabbing a cup of coffee to talk to him. "You're such an idiot."

"Don't. Don't start on me."

"Don't start on you? You were going to say 'yes'.  _You._ " She shot a look into the library where Sam and Bobby were looking over a stack of books. "You know that, as soon as you're gone, Sam'll say 'yes', too. Look what happened when you went to Hell, D. I'd never be able to keep him strong. Not by myself."

"You don't know that." He whispered, solemnly.

"Yeah, I do, Dean. Sam  _fails_  without  _you_. Every time." Marion swallowed as a thought she'd been dancing around finally settled into her brain. She nodded and patted his shoulder. "Don't be an idiot. Team Free Will needs you, Dummy."

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Marion tiptoed down the stairs and looked around the library. Everyone was sleeping, Bobby and Sam with the help of some cheap, strong liquor, Dean with the application of Castiel's grace. She slipped an envelope filled with folded pieces of paper out of her jacket pocket and leaned it against a picture frame on Bobby's desk. She'd planned the words out carefully but she knew it wouldn't matter much. They were going to hate her. Bobby's note was sentimental, full of encouraging words about his influence on her and how she would always view him as a Dad. Castiel's note was an apology, plain and simple. She said she wished things were different, that she knew they could've been something special but she had to do what she had to do. Her letter to Sam was 100 words that boiled down to 'Don't say 'yes'. I know I'm saying 'yes', but you  _can't_.'

Her letter to Dean was the most involved.

_**Dean,** _

_**I realized last night, when I was talking shit to you about you trying to say yes, that I was right last year. I'm the Wildcard. I'm plan B. You're plan A, (and you have been since before we were born), but you can't say yes, because Sam needs you. Sam proved it when you went to Hell. He can't be trusted to make the smart choices when you're gone and Bobby and I can't control him without you. But you were right, too. Nuclear's the only option we've got. Somebody's got to say yes to Michael, and it's got to be soon. Lucifer's winning and he doesn't even have his true vessel. Michael needs a Michael Sword... and it's going to be me. I'm sorry. I know you forbade me from sacrificing myself for you, but I'm not just doing this for you. I'm doing it for the world, for Bobby, Sam, and Cas. I'm doing it for Fergus.** _

_**I've been through a lot, D., and I've been so tired for so many years and I've just been plugging along for you and Sam and I finally understand why... I'm still alive, after all these years and all this pain, because I was supposed to do this for you. This is how I'm supposed to go out. I just want my ending to mean something, to save you and maybe the world. To help put an end to the Devil. It's that time. I hope you can forgive me, but I guess... I'll never know, either way.** _

_**I love you, womb-mate. Keep Sam strong and don't let Bobby have that bullet.** _

She gave one last look around the house that was her home, gave a long look to her family, then quietly exited. 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Marion sat on a bench, watching a group of kids play tag in the park. Crowley appeared next to her, looking at her and ignoring the children. "You called?"

"You know, I think you would have been a good Dad if you had loved your wife."

Crowley followed her eye-line to the kids. "Okay. Maybe. Gavin's been dead almost as long as I have, pet. Can't really change that."

"Yeah. I just wanted you to know that I... I think you would be a good dad."

"Are you pregnant?" He asked, a mix of excitement and anger in his voice. Any baby wouldn't be  _his_ , but it would be  _hers_ , so...

She snorted. "No, Fergus. I'm not pregnant." She turned to him, seriousness falling over her face. "I'm dying."

"What?"

"Lucifer's winning. True vessel, or not, he's winning. There's two Horsemen unaccounted for, one of those being Death. He's going to win unless Michael gets a vessel that can actually hold him without exploding. Everything will die if Lucifer wins. Dean can't say 'yes'. He's the only one who can keep Sam from buckling. They have that thing. I don't. It has to be  _me_."

Panic hit Crowley's stomach and he grabbed her hand. "No. Pony, please. I can find Pestilence. I can help you-"

"Find him for my brothers. I'm doing this, Fergus." She reached over and placed her hand on his cheek, closing her eyes as he lovingly snuggled into her palm. "We both knew it would end this way. It's why you kept it from me for so long, remember? I'm a Winchester. We martyr ourselves. All of us."

"What am I going to do without you?"

Marion stood from the bench. "You're gonna be better than Fergus, better than Crowley. You're gonna help my brothers save the world."

"Marion." Crowley stood and started to follow her, but an invisible wall stopped him. "You didn't."

"I couldn't let you follow me. I drew it with Sterno. You just need to burn it, it'll disappear eventually. By then, it'll be too late."

"Pony, please, don't."

"I almost didn't say goodbye. I... I didn't say goodbye to my brothers or Bobby, just wrote them letters, but I needed you to know that I love you and I'm doing this for you as much as I am for my brothers and the world. When you find Pestilence, tell Sam and Dean. Help end this. Please."

"Anything for you, Pony. You know that."

She blew a kiss to him, then ran. She grabbed a doomsayer and pulled him into an alley. "My name is Marion Winchester. Do you know me?" He nodded, frantically. "Pray to the angels. Tell them where I am."

He devolved into mutterings of 'Oh, Heaven!' and Marion swallowed as a woosh announced the arrival of an angelic trio. She turned to Zachariah and his two lackeys. "Marion. I'm surprised."

"Stuff it, Zach. I'm here because I have to be, but I want the record to show that I hate you."

"And why, pray-tell, do you  _have_ to be here?"

"Lucifer is going to destroy the world. Even if we manage to keep Sam from saying 'yes', Lucifer is winning. Michael needs a vessel for the big sibling showdown. I can't let it be Dean. So, here I am."

"Oh, really? I'm supposed to believe-"

Marion stepped forward, dropping her jacket to the ground and spinning slowly. "I got no weapons, I got no backup. I am a citizen of this Earth who can't, in good conscience, let it become the disaster Lucifer wants it to be." She finished her 360 and looked into Zachariah's eyes, tears pricking the corners of hers. "I am a sister who can't let her twin sacrifice himself. I'm the reasonable Winchester, Zachariah. You should have seen this coming. Tell Michael that he has a vessel; ready and willing to say 'yes'. You know that I'm a suitable replacement for Dean. Just... make sure my family survive. Promise me that and I will say 'yes'."

"Of course."

Marion nodded. "So, how's this work? Do I just stand here and wait, or-"

She was answered by the buildings around her shaking. The glow of archangel grace lit up her face.  _Marion Winchester. Will you consent to being my vessel?_

"My family lives."

_*Yes.*_

"And you try to keep the collateral damage to a minimum."

"Are you really making demands of Michael?" Zachariah asked, snidely.

_*Did you expect any different, Zachariah? Of course, I will try to keep human casualties to a minimum.*_

"And Cas gets to go home."

"What?! No!" Zachariah shouted.

"God brought him back; Joshua confirmed it. Are you really gonna continue punishing him for something God practically sanctioned after the fact?"

"Oh, you haven't even begun to see 'punished', little girl." Zachariah started.

_*Yes. Castiel goes home after the fight. Anything else?*_

Marion took a deep breath. "No. No, I don't have anything else. Yes, Michael. I consent to being your vessel."

She'd expected to pretty much stop existing when Michael took her body. Jimmy had said it was like being strapped to a comet, that he didn't remember anything. But Michael was different. Maybe all archangels are. Maybe she was just a stronger consciousness than Jimmy was. No matter the reason, Marion was never completely pushed away. She was always aware of what was happening, up to and during the confrontation at Stull Cemetery. She'd been distressed to see Lucifer wearing Sam, but she couldn't do anything to show it as Lucifer and Michael began their conversation about God and their orders. She called out from inside her mind as Dean pulled up to the cemetery, but Michael tamped her down. 

"Hey. We need to talk." Dean announced.

"Dean. Even for you, this is a whole new mountain of stupid." Lucifer said, amused.

"I'm not talking to  _you_. I'm talking to  _Sam_."

"You're no longer the vessel, Dean." Marion heard her voice respond. "You got no right to be here."

"Mare, if you're in there somewhere, I am so sorry." 

"Marion isn't home right now." Michael responded.

"Well, then you're next on my list, buttercup, but right now, I need five minutes with him."

"You little maggot. You are no longer a part of this story!" Michael stepped intimidatingly toward Dean.

"Hey! Assbutt!" Michael turned to Castiel's voice and he and Marion screamed as they burned and disappeared back to Heaven to heal. When they made it back to Stull, there was a hole in the ground, some bit of Michael's knowledge told her that it was a hole into the Cage in Hell... and Sam was gearing up to jump. 

"Sam! It's not gonna end this way!" Michael called out. "Step back!"

"You're gonna have to  _make_  me!" Sam responded.

"I  _have_  to fight my brother, Sam! Here and now! It's my destiny!" Michael demanded. Sam closed his eyes and fell backward, but Michael grabbed his jacket and Sam grabbed Marion's arm and then they were falling... and being pulled apart. Michael was ripped from her as Lucifer was ripped from Sam as they fell into the Cage.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Marion walked down the stairs to Bobby's basement. It'd been more than a year since she set foot in Singer Salvage. She could hear a woman talking. "Aww. She sounds nice. Are you going to make sweet love to her before you stab her to death, Bobby?" She heard the sound of a gas pilot light catching. "That is your usual thing, right?" Marion blinked as Bobby aimed his flamethrower into a metal barrel and the demon in the chair started to scream.

"I want Crowley's name, now!" Bobby shouted as the demon's flesh began to blister. "Crowley's name."

"Bobby." Marion said, calmly putting her hand on his shoulder.

The demon looked up, hopeful for a second, before she realized that Marion wasn't there to help. "Marion? We thought you were dead! Girl, where have you been?"

"Long story. I have a plan to help you. Now that you've proven that isn't just a myth..." She gestured at the barrel. "I can give you Crowley's name. You can burn her."

"How do you know-"

"I will tell you upstairs. Burn her and we'll talk."

Bobby sprayed lighter fluid over inside of the barrel and lit it on fire. The demon screamed as she burned and disappeared.

Marion drank down several gulps of Bobby's whiskey before turning to him. "Crowley's real name is Fergus Roderick MacLeod. He's from Scotland. Canisbay. I don't know where he's buried, though, and burial records from back then leave something to be desired. Your best bet at finding his bones is going to be... summoning the spirit of his son, Gavin." She said, her tone calm and even.

"You... know an awful lot about Crowley." A light-bulb seemed to go off in Bobby's head. "Did you say his name is Fergus? As in..."

"Yes, as in my little demon pal. As in... my husband." She admitted.

"You..."

"Get the judgement off your face, Bobby, I'm trying to help you. Gavin died a couple years after Fergus did." She continued, seamlessly. "He was captain on a trade ship on the way here. It went down off of Massachusetts. There are artifacts that were recovered from the shipwreck, including Gavin's signet ring. We need it. We can summon Gavin with it."

"And Gavin's just gonna tell us where he buried his father?"

Marion took another gulp of whiskey. "Can you imagine Crowley as a father? Gavin hated his guts. Fergus was abusive and terrible. He was a drunk and a philanderer. Fergus never wanted him and he let Gavin know at every turn. Gavin will tell us...  _happily_."

"Just gotta get that ring. You know where it is?" Bobby asked, pulling his whiskey bottle to his mouth.

"Andover. Museum. I've got somebody on it. I'm gonna have to go meet them, but I'll be back. You can start on the summoning..."

"No. Not yet. You know, you have to tell me how you ended up married to Crowley."

"He's different behind closed doors, Bobby. He's different with me. Always has been." She took a deep breath. "But when I went to him, as his queen, and begged for him to give you your soul back, he shot me down. He told me 'no', so I called on everything I've learned about him through a life by his side to figure out a way to get him to do what I want, anyway. Gavin will give us what we need, I promise."

"Okay, but... how did you end up... married to Crowley?" Bobby asked.

"After Sam jumped, after he pulled me in, Michael and I... we separated. I knew Fergus would come for me... just like last time I was in Hell. The Cage only reopened for a second, didn't even have a chance to grab Sammy. I was suddenly in Ilchester, standing where Lilith died. Crowley showed up and took me to...  _not_  Hell. It was a fort in, I think Guam, and it was full of demons. He proposed at his coronation, which was less 'long live the king' and more... a 100 demon orgy with entrails and blood and... surprisingly amazing wine." She chuckled. "And in the middle of this craziness, while I'm trying to pretend I'm invisible because I'm, you know human in a roomful of demons, the new King of Hell gets down on one knee and asks me to be his queen."

Marion sighed and looked at her feet. "You gotta understand, Bobby. I've loved him since I was, like, fourteen. Even when I was working for him, when I thought I hated him, I would've dropped everything to be his queen. And I did. I haven't hunted in a year, I haven't spoken to anybody outside of the court. That demon downstairs, she thought I was here to help her, because I've been trying to be a good queen to them. But... I can't let the demon I married destroy the closest thing I have to a father."

Bobby smiled. "You know... yer brothers can be total assholes, but... damn if I didn't do a good job raisin' you, girl."

She chuckled. "Here I was thinkin' you were gonna call me an abomination and kick me out. Listen... I gotta call... Rufus. He's the one getting the ring for me."

"Rufus, really? Didn't think you were on speaking terms with him."

"No, Bobby. You weren't on speaking terms with him. Turner and I are fine. Probably not once he finds out I married a demon, but... we're good for now." She said, pulling out her phone to call Rufus Turner.

Getting the ring was a fun time filled with arrests and escapes and laxatives, but eventually they got the signet ring and set a ring of salt as Bobby said, "Amate spiritus oscorte tae quadaramos aramos nobiscume quarde ahpule nos chikitara." The ring began to float and Marion tossed the herbs into the candle. The room went cold and then a ghost flickered into being in front of them. "Gavin MacLeod?" Bobby asked.

"Yes." The ghost looked around. "Is-is this Hell?"

"That's gonna depend on you. You Fergus MacLeod's boy?" Gavin nodded. "You, me and her... we're gonna have a nice long chat." Bobby gestured at Marion.

"Who are you?" Gavin asked. 

"Long story short, I'm your stepmother." She stepped forward. "And we need to know where you buried your father's body."

~~~~

Bobby summoned Crowley into the basement. He looked annoyed, stressed and angry, his normal for the past few months. Bobby turned to him. "Well, you look like hammered crap."

"And you're a vision as always." Crowley retorted. He looked up at the Devil's Trap Bobby painted on the ceiling. "Don't we both know how this game ends? Really, Bobby, you gotta know when to fold 'em."

"Word on the street is that ever since Lucifer went to the pokey,  _you're_  the big kahuna downstairs."

"I see you've been reading the trades." Crowley said, tiredly.

"Trouble in Paradise?"

"Mate. You... have no idea." He turned and pulled a crystal tumbler out of thin air and poured himself a drink of scotch. "I thought... when I got the corner office... I thought it was all going to be rainbows and two-headed puppies. But, if I'm being honest, it's been Hell." He took a drink.

"I thought that was the point."

Crowley finished his drink and put the glass on the table. "You know what the problem with demons is?"

"They're demons?"

"Exactly. Evil lying prats, the whole lot of them... and stupid. Try to show them a-a new way, a  _better_  way, and what do you get? Bugger all. You know, there's days that I think Lucifer's whole 'Spike anything with black eyes' plan wasn't half bad. Hmm. Haven't been able to talk to anyone about this, not even the queen. Feels good to get it off my chest. We should make this a thing."

"Do I look like Dr. Phil to you?" Bobby asked, sarcastically.

"A little. Anyhoo. Obviously not here for a social call. So on with it."

"I want-"

"Save you the recap. In fact I'll do the shorthand for you." He pointed at Bobby. "I want my soul back, idjit." He pointed at himself. "'fraid not." He pointed at Bobby. "But I'm surly and I got a beard. Gimme! Blah, blah, blah. Homespun cornpone insult, witty retort from yours truly. The bottom line is, you get bubkes. Are we done?"

"I think things might go a little differently this time." Marion said, walking down the stairs into the basement.

"Marion." Crowley turned to her. "How did I know you'd be here?"

She smirked. "You didn't." She stepped closer to him, but avoided stepping under the trap. "You've got a tell when you try to hide surprise, Fergus."

Crowley's eyebrows raised. "Oh. Are we speaking candidly in front of the family now?"

"Just Bobby." She answered. "I figured I owed him the truth since I'm married to the man holding his soul hostage."

"You're picking  _him_  over  _me_? We haven't even been married a year." 

"It would be a beautiful early anniversary present if you would give back the soul of the man who raised me." She suggested. "Please, Fergus, before we have to do something I'll regret."

Crowley chuckled. "I love it when you act like you're in charge, my queen. Let's see what you got."

"Oh, we're just getting started." Bobby said, turning to his left as Gavin appeared. 

Crowley looked from Gavin to Bobby to Marion and back to Bobby. "Gavin? Is that you? It-it's been so long. I love you so-" He stopped pretending to be choked up and laughed. "Sorry. Your soul for my boy, is that it, right? I've got to give you credit for thinking outside the box on that one, but- problem is... I loathe the little bastard. Marion, you know this. You want to torture him, just let me pull up a chair and watch. Hell, burn his bones and send him down to me and we can have a proper family reunion. That's right, son? You picked the wrong bargaining chip this time, my friend."

"He isn't a chip." Crowley looked confused as Bobby stepped next to Marion.

"See, Marion knew all kinds of things about you, but the specifics were few and far. But she predicted that Gavin would hate you maybe even more than you hate him. He was more than happy to squawk." 

"What did you tell them, son?" Crowley asked.

The ghost smiled wickedly. "Everything." He looked very satisfied as he flickered out of existence. 

"I know it all now... Fergus. You may be king of the dirt bags here but, in life, you were nothing but a two-bit tailor who sold his soul in exchange for an extra three inches below the belt." 

"Just trying to hit the double digits. So you got a glimpse behind the curtain. And?"

"And... now I know where you're planted." Bobby answered.

Marion looked down, picking up Bobby's phone and tossing it to her husband. He looked confused as he put it to his ear. "Dean. It's been a long time. We should get together." There was a pause. "Back?" Marion could see the distress on his face. "A kilt. I had very athletic calves. What's the game?" 

Crowley pulled the phone away from his head and looked from Marion to Bobby. "This is ridiculous. The whole burning bones thing, it's a myth." There was a bit of a desperation in his tone.

"I know an employee of yours who would disagree." 

"Disrespectful little bitch, calls you names behind your back. Better without her." Marion said.

"That's where she got to." Crowley mused.

"You demons. You think you're something special, but you're just spirits. Twisted, perverted, evil spirits, but... end of the day, you're nothing but ghosts with an ego. We torch your bones, you go up in flames." 

Crowley turned to Marion. "This was  _your_  idea?"

"You and I both know I'd never light you up." She said, calmly. "But Dean would. Sam would. Don't make them."

"Your bones for my soul." Bobby said. "Going once... going twice..."

Crowley tossed the phone to the ground. "Bollocks." He exclaimed, raising his palm to reveal Bobby's contract on the hunter's arms and then started wiping the contract away.

"You can go ahead and leave in the part about my legs." Crowley rolled his eyes but left that ink on Bobby's skin as the rest disappeared. "Pleasure doing business with you." 

"Now if you don't mind." Crowley looked up at the Devil's Trap and Marion stepped up on a chair to wipe part of it away. He grabbed her by her flannel and pushed her into the stairs. Bobby moved to stop it, but Marion calmly put her hand up to stop the man. "When you get back, we're going to have a conversation about loyalty, Pony."

"Immediately followed by a conversation about forcing your queen's hand when you could have taking the high road instead of being a complete and utter asshole." She said, calmly. He sneered at her, then disappeared. Marion leaned down and picked up the phone, turning on the speaker function.

"I believe those are mine." Crowley's voice came through.

"You know, now that I think about it, maybe I'll just napalm your ass anyhow." Dean said.

"Dean, he's a dick, but a deal's a deal." Sam said.

"I don't need you to fight my battles for me, Moose. I don't even let my wife do that. Get bent." Crowley said.

"Your  _wife_?" Dean asked.

"Yes. My wife. Your sister. Marion Winchester-MacLeod. She insisted on being a hyphenate. Now, if you'll excuse me. I've a little hell to raise."

Marion groaned, slightly, as Bobby took his phone from her hand. "So much fer keepin' it between you, me and Rufus."

She shook her head. "If that's  _all_  he does in retaliation, then I'm getting off easy." 

"You sure you want to go back to that?"

"The heart wants, Bobby. I'm definitely not going back right now, though. He's been on edge even before all this shit. And... now that my brothers know... I have to deal with that aftermath."

Bobby took the phone off of speaker and put it to his ear. "I appreciate you boys lending a hand." There was a pause. "Still, knowing how much you love flying the friendly skies, I guess a nine hour plane trip was no picnic. What did you do, drink your way through it?" There was another long pause as Marion decided to walk upstairs and to the kitchen to make a pot of coffee. 

"They mention it?" She asked, setting a plate of cobbler and a cup of coffee in front of Bobby ten minutes later.

"Not really. Sam started to ask about it, but I think Dean cut him down. It's gonna be bad."

"Might as well stick around here."

*************

"Hey, Bobby! We're back!" Dean shouted, walking into the house and dropping their bags by the stairs.

Bobby and Marion walked into the study. "So, how was Scotland?" Bobby asked, wrapping his arms around each of them.

"Pretty gorgeous."

"It was green." Sam responded.

"You guys get a chance to hit any of the cities?" Marion asked, angling the conversation where she wanted it.

"We flew in and out from Edinburgh, which was really nice." Dean's voice was tight.

"Edinburgh is great." Marion steeled her vision at her twin for the aftermath of the next sentence. "Fergus and I spent the first week of our honeymoon there."

Dean's eyes narrowed and Bobby stepped forward a bit in protective instinct. "You wanna do this, now?!"

"I wanna get it over with." Marion said, putting a calming hand on Bobby's shoulder. "The yelling and shouting, calling me an idiot, questioning my mental prowess, asking if I'm possessed. The 'how could you's and the cursing. Go ahead. Start it, so we can finish it."

"Fine. Let's start with 'Crowley is Fergus'? Crowley is Fergus and you never said a word?"

"Why would I? Why tell you beforehand? When we went for the Colt, I was okay with us killing him. I was happy for it. I'd never have to worry about any of it again, but as he talked, I realized his plan, realized he'd never, actually, lied to me. Sam kills Lilith, we gank Lucifer, he rises to the throne. Never lied or tried to use me. So, after we made it out of the mansion, I trusted him again and we needed him, so I definitely wasn't going to tell you, then."

"Fine. You know we thought you were dead? You couldn't pick up a phone? Too busy playin' Stepford Wife for a demon?"

"I thought Sammy was still in the Cage; he was when  _I_  got out. And you were supposed to be doing the Apple Pie thing with Lisa and her kid. I was supposed to call you up and say 'Hey, I'm not dead, but you promised Sam you wouldn't waste your leftover time hunting, so just keep doing what you're doing?' You would've dropped Lisa and picked back up with the Family Business without hesitation. I'm not stupid."

"How'd you know about Lisa?" Sam asked.

Marion rolled her eyes. "You guys forget how well I really know you idiots." She sighed. "Look. I know it's bad that I... I married a demon... married Crowley, but... he's pretty much the only consistent relationship I've had and he treats me-"

"What happened with Cas? You had a good thing going with him, right?" Dean interrupted.

Marion scoffed. "Castiel didn't have time for me when it was just the apocalypse. You think he'd have time for me during a civil war in Heaven?"

"That's not gonna last forever! You couldn't wait until after he wins?"

"You say that like he's going to win. He's against Raphael, an archangel. Even with half of Heaven behind him, Castiel's chances are slim."

"Okay, who the hell are you?" Dean growled.

"Excuse me?"

Dean threw his hands up and threw a look to Bobby. He scoffed and turned back to Marion. "Where am I? Sam's been hunting like RoboCop since he got back from Hell, and you get out and marry a demon? You let me think you're dead and you marry a demon and now, you think Cas is gonna lose? Our whole lives, you have had an unwavering optimism. Even in the face of everything we've been through, you've always been certain that we would come out okay. You-"

"Because we always have, D. I didn't die when I ran out into the path of that Chevy when we were four. I didn't die when Dad put my head through that rest stop bathroom door when we were fourteen. I didn't die when Lilith sicced one of Crowley's hounds on me at twenty. I didn't die after 239 years in Hell. I even survived, somehow, falling into Lucifer's Cage. I would love to think that Castiel would have the same sort of luck and... so far, he has. He was a balloon of Chunky soup all over Chuck's walls and he came back from that, but I kinda think that luck won't extend much longer, ya know? Just... practically, it doesn't make sense to be optimistic for him." Marion shook her head. "Cas had his chance. He didn't have time for me. Crowley forgave me for cutting him off and trapping him in the middle of the woods. He saved me after Lucifer raped me with grace and I wanted to die. Crowley made me queen of Hell even after I fucked Castiel... twice, and said 'yes' to Michael when he tried to keep me from doing it."

Marion put her hand on Dean's shoulder and sighed. "Look... Crowley and I, it was always going to happen. He cares about me and I..." She wanted to say that she loved him, but she couldn't make herself lie to her brother. If she was being honest, she didn't really feel much of anything. She had spent the last year going through the motions, doing what she thought she was supposed to do, not what she wanted because she didn't really want anything. "...fell in love with him decades ago." She finished.

Dean looked at her, obviously zeroing in on something off about her. "Okay." He put his hand over hers, looking into her eyes. "You gonna stay?"

"I already told Fergus I wouldn't be home for a while." 

"And you ain't scared of what hubby'll do when you don't come home?" 

"No. I'm not scared of him." 

"Okay." Dean nodded, squeezing her hand. "We're can talk this out some more later. I hate that you married that dick, but... kinda proud you hyphenated."


End file.
